


tears never explained

by iced__peach_tea



Series: confidante [2]
Category: Toaru Kagaku no Railgun | A Certain Scientific Railgun
Genre: Fluff, Gals being pals, Hurt/Comfort, PTSD
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-19
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:47:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28167237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iced__peach_tea/pseuds/iced__peach_tea
Summary: "Misaka Mikoto truly was on another level than the rest of them, just as Saten had suspected from the start. "Saten hangs out with Misaka, but soon realizes that her troubles never truly ended. She discovers that there is more than she, Uiharu, or even Shirai could have ever imagined.Despite her best efforts, Mikoto can't escape the realities of her past.
Relationships: Misaka Mikoto & Saten Ruiko, Misaka Mikoto & Shirai Kuroko
Series: confidante [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2054241
Comments: 34
Kudos: 68





	1. faith

In the hushed room, the girls looked at each other with apprehension, the only light coming from the single monitor. Mikoto sat leaning forwards towards the other girl, hands gripping tightly at the blanket underneath her.

“And when the cab driver finally stopped to let the woman out, she was all alone in the street in a completely unknown neighborhood. She broke out into a cold sweat, completely vulnerable. Then, she heard the sounds of footprints slowly walking towards her.”

A loud gulp came from the young girl.

“The woman started running away as fast as she could, and she had almost made it to a Judgment facility, but then she felt a cold hand grab her shoulder from behind!”

Mikoto gasped and leaned forward.

“She was whipped around, only to look into the cold, dead eyes of…!”

“Of what!?”

“Her high school friend who had become part of a pyramid scheme!”

“ _Are you kidding me?!”_ came the frustrated cry of Mikoto. She flipped on the lights of Saten-san’s apartment with her powers and rolled back until she laid flat on her friend’s bed.

“What? Wouldn’t it be _super_ scary if one of us got involved in one of those? The cab driver was in on it too!” Saten replied, holding in her amusement. “You would never get left alone!”

Mikoto groaned and rubbed her hands against her eyes. “I should’ve known it was going to be another dumb story.”

Saten just laughed. “How was I supposed to know my urban legends site was going to be so dry today, the day we needed it the most?”

Today just the two of them were hanging out, as Kuroko and Uiharu had their annual summer recertification training. The timing couldn’t have been worse, as what was anticipated to be the best horror movie of the summer was premiering today and Mikoto had wanted to go see it with all of her friends. She had been looking forward to doing something fun and simple with all of her friends, then maybe going to eat after the movies. It seemed that Kuroko was more disappointed than Mikoto though. She recalls her kouhai yelling _“And what if when Onee-sama is frightened, she allows some_ undeserving ape _to comfort her! To t-t-touch her! No! No Onee-Sama! You’re honor!”_ Mikoto assured her that there would be no touching. Well, if assurance was a swat to the head and yelling to get her head out of the gutter. Despite all her theatrics, Kuroko insisted that she and Saten still go on their own, as she believed that their Judgement duties would last most of the day.

However, Mikoto and Saten were far too naïve. When they approached the box office, across all of the movie’s poster was a banner reading “SOLD OUT”. After asking the young man working in the booth, they learned that the movie had been sold out since last week and that there were no available tickets for the next two days. This was one of the downsides of being in a city of over two million students who were all out on summer vacation. They checked the other titles and none seemed too interesting. Plus, Mikoto had really been looking forward to that specific film. The disappointed pair left and headed to their regular crepe truck at the nearby park. As they sat eating and pondering what they’d do for the rest of the day, Mikoto fiddled with her Gekota chain, not allowing her hands to be too idle. Finally, Saten proposed that they find their own scary stories on her favorite urban legends site. While Mikoto doubted they’d find success, they had nothing else to do and headed to the young girl’s apartment, where they still sat scrolling through the site together.

“Ugh, it doesn’t look like there are any better stories on here,” Mikoto commented, looking at the titles of different articles over Saten’s shoulder. The other girl hummed out a tone of agreement.

“Yeah, I’ve read through most of the ones on here today, and none are too scary. There are some pretty cool ones, like this one about Esper’s hearing mysterious hums around town,” Saten said, mouse hovering over the title.

“How is that mysterious?” Mikoto asked, squinting at the article. “This is a city of science, so there are different pieces of technology and generators everywhere.”

At that, Saten sighed and scratched the back of her head. “I guess that’s true. Still an interesting read though. Anyways, I don’t think there’s anything here today that will interest you. Maybe we should try to find some free horror movie online?” Saten proposed.

“Sounds good to me.”

“Great!” Saten began typing into the search bar. “Anything movie you want in particular?”

“Something actually good,” Mikoto laughed. “Are you hungry? I want to stop down at the new vending machine across the street.”

“Yeah, thank you, I’ll take whatever.”

Mikoto left and walked down to the brightly colored vending machine. It was the latest one rolled onto the streets to be tested on the youth in Academy City. This particular vending machine was one that served interesting flavors of both piping hot curry and chilled sandwiches. Mikoto thought before selecting two of each of the savory sandwiches and sweet sandwiches. Then she turned to the soda vending machine next to it to get her signature coconut cider. _Limited edition bottles?_ She gave a small shrug to herself and grabbed the glass bottles that popped out at the bottom of the machine. There was a small shuffle as moved the chilled bottles into the crook of her arm, trying not to damage her food. Though if the flavors turned out to be bad, it wouldn’t matter if they were smushed or not.

Mikoto loved the constant change that came with being in this city. The science and youth pushed at each other together to create a fast-paced environment, and there were always opportunities to do new things. It was a lifestyle that Mikoto thrived in, as it allowed her to push from Level 1 to Level 5 so quickly. One that allowed the old to be washed away regularly, nothing ever staying the same for long. If everything had stayed the same, it would’ve been unbearable.

Even though the horror that came with discovering the truth about her sisters happened only less than a year ago, so many things had happened between then and now that it seemed like a far-off memory. Mikoto believed in the blessing that was a busy schedule. Idle hands lead to… thinking. Thinking about the overwhelming past, something that the young girl would rather not be doing.

The warmth she got from her friends helps to stave away the darkness that threatened to consume her. After the Level 6 Shift Project, she wondered if those thoughts that were being planted in her head were also somewhere deep inside of her, something that even her closest friends couldn’t see. She hadn’t told them about the experiments and she sometimes wondered if she even could. Despite her trust in them, she also trusted that they wouldn’t leave her in times of need. The atrocities done to her sisters exposed the dark side of Academy City as something foul and more dangerous than she could bear let them experience. What she confided in her friends was only the tip of the iceberg that lay beneath, and Mikoto knew that even gaining knowledge of its existence could get them killed. The only people even capable of surviving were those who were far more powerful and experienced, like the other Level 5s, or that idiot, Touma. And even with their power, the hospital was a far too familiar place for them.

Just associating with Mikoto seemed to be more and more of a hazardous endeavor. Thinking about Kongou and Kuroko, even Touma, getting hurt while involved in her issues made her heart ache. Though Kuroko only gave Mikoto love and understanding after she got injured, watching the Level 4 teleporter reduced to getting around in her wheelchair pressed down on her consciousness like wet cement. The powers that ran their city desperately wanted to play with their most powerful pawns, the Level 5s, despite their attempts to thwart their advances. She often wondered if her starry-eyed peer, Shokuhou, had the right idea to keep everybody at arms-length. Never had her clique been swept up into the mess quite like her friends and sisters have. Then again, even though Mikoto would never admit it, Shokuhou had an enormous advantage when it came to detecting the forewarnings of danger. Perhaps she should listen more to what that girl had to say.

_Like that’d ever happen,_ Mikoto scoffed internally.

She trudged up the stairs back to the apartment, the heaviness that came with summer malaise pressing down on her shoulders. As she opened the door of her friend’s apartment, she was greeted with a hearty laugh from the inside, one that melted away the bad inside of her.

“You still gave everybody a panty show even without me there!?” Saten cried hysterically, hand on her forehead. “You must’ve really missed me today, Uiharu!”

Mikoto smiled and set their meal on the bedside table, listening to the intelligible argument the flustered Uiharu was giving. She watched fondly as Saten wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes.

“Yeah, yeah, you definitely will need to give me more details later,” Saten teased, finally starting to calm down. “Now get back to your break so you can rebuild your strength, alright? They'll be wanting another round later!”

There were more sounds of protest as Saten gave her farewells before explaining the situation to Mikoto. Just the explanation alone led to the two of them doubling over in laughter again.

“She really tripped in just the perfect manner to give that kind of show to the head instructor?” Mikoto laughed, ripping open the plastic of her peanut butter and pork katsu sandwich.

“According to Uiharu, that’s exactly how it happened. Whew,” Saten let out, wiping the last tear away, “haven’t laughed this much in a while. I suppose these are what summers are for, huh? Let’s get that movie on.”

The two settled onto Saten’s bed with the laptop on her chair in front of them and her bedside table she had pulled over to set their snacks on. She clicked on a movie title, one with a teenage girl with blood dripping down her face and jagged claws hiding in the darkness behind her, ready to pounce.

“What’s this movie about?” Mikoto asked as they waited through the copyright warnings.

“No idea,” Saten admitted. “But it had the highest reviews so it can’t be bad.”

The two fell silent as the movie began. Mikoto gasped and cringed at several points throughout the movie. It had a good, if not a bit basic, plot. The town is haunted by a curse with people getting picked off one by one. During particularly tense moments Saten would grip Mikoto’s arm with both hands and squeeze her eyes shut. Mikoto felt her ego flare up and practically puffed out her chest as she felt that she was somehow the protective agent over Saten, even though there was no real threat. She would casually drink from her coconut cider bottle, regardless of the fact that there were only mere drops remaining. Despite her bravado, she found herself sometimes clutching Saten back. She loved the rush that she got from horror films, the chills and all, but she always seemed to push out an impression of nonchalance in the presence of others. Even so, Mikoto was glad to be spending this time with her friend.

The plot went on and Mikoto became enwrapped with the story, falling in love with the characters. Before she had even noticed, she had eaten both her peanut butter pork katsu and ricotta summer berry sandwich. It was the climactic scene of the movie where the two remaining protagonists faced off against the source of their sufferings. In the dim lighting, the two clashed with the inhuman being, putting their all into the final battle. Just as they got the upper hand, it swept from behind them and the sidekick cried out as its claws sunk into her calf. With one swift, brutal move it ripped off the leg with a sickening crunch, crimson liquid splattering on the floors.

Mikoto’s heart stopped, nausea seizing her stomach.

_The rail yard. Blood pooling out from underneath freight, proof that Mikoto hadn’t imagined it crushing her doppelganger. And completely separate, several feet away..._

Mikoto clamped her hand over her mouth and stifled a gag, turning away from the screen and Saten.

_Her severed leg._

She trembled uncontrollably, images flashing through her mind faster than she could think. Cold sweat beaded on the back of her neck, sickness clawing her way up her throat. The world began to close in on itself, the only thing still in her unfocused vision her empty soda bottle. She could practically see the image that haunted her dreams with them bloodied, clawing at her clothes, calling for her.

_They all died horribly because of me. Just like she did._

_The blood. Thousands of her sisters._

_The leg._

_All because of me._

She couldn’t hold it back anymore. She lurched upright and stumbled across the room. Mikoto hadn’t even known that she made it to the bathroom until she was heaving into the toilet, all of her meal coming up. In that moment, she had realized Saten had been beside her the whole time, holding her hair up and gently rubbing circles on her back.

“I’ve got you, just let it out now…” Saten soothed.

There were tears in her eyes that Mikoto didn’t remember having as she hurled again, clutching at the cold porcelain. Saten kept murmuring comforting words next to her, her warm hands trying to calm the tremors that wracked her friend’s entire being. There was nothing left in her stomach, and after a few dry heaves, Mikoto felt her body finally relent and she let herself slump against the bathtub, pressing her cheek to the chilled surface. She squeezed her eyes shut, gasping as reality swam back into focus. Saten had flushed the toilet and was rummaging in her drawers. Then the soft hand carefully brushed away her bangs before cupping her cheek and wiped a towel underneath her chin. It was humiliating, but Mikoto couldn’t move. It felt like the world still spinning even with her eyes closed. Suddenly Saten was near her again, instructing her to breathe in time with each other.

“C’mon, Misaka-san, just breathe in and out with me… There you go, like that.” Saten was warm. Had she always been so warm? Comforting. The gentle fingers that ran up and down her back were coaxing her into reality. Static shrouded her mind still, but Saten was a constant presence, faithful.

Slowly, the world began to still again.

Wordlessly, Mikoto pushed herself up. For once, Saten didn’t talk. Instead, she led her back to her bed, arm wrapped firmly around the older girl’s shoulders in support. They sat next to each other, both unwilling to break the tension between them. The electromaster sat hands clasped, staring directly to the floor, her face unreadable.

This was the first time Saten had seen her friend like this. Sure, angered and losing her temper was one thing, but spiraling into a full-blown panic attack was an entirely different one. Hell, Saten didn’t even know that she had episodes like this one. The more she learned the older girl, the greater the enigma became. Despite how close they acted, Saten didn’t truly know what was happening in Misaka's life. She had secrets even Shirai wasn’t privy to, even they were the closest to one another. Whatever had happened all those months ago caused Misaka to entirely block off a portion of her life. _Is it because of my weakness?_ Most likely, even though Misaka would never say her lack of ability was a deficiency.

The emptiness between the two was starting to threaten to swallow them both up. Eventually, Saten was the one who broke the silence.

“I’m here for you, Misaka-san. I always have been.”

Mikoto gave a soft sound of agreement.

“You don’t have to talk to me about it. But you need to tell someone.” A pause. Then a sigh. “It’s been so long since… _whatever_ happened. And it’s still affecting you badly. It really worries me. It worries all of us.” Saten felt her heart squeeze as her friend avoided eye contact with her.

“…It’s too much,” Mikoto finally stated, failing to keep the tremor out of her voice. “I… I don’t…” She trailed off and paused for a while, trying to still the racing thoughts that flashed through her mind. She stayed silent until she could make a clear statement. Then, “It was a problem created by me and fixed by me. And it’s over now. They’re safe.”

“Who’s safe?” Once again Saten was met with silence. “Who was it?”

Mikoto took a shuddering inhale and slowly let it out. “I’m not ready for that yet.”

Saten sagged, trying to hold back her disappointment. She didn’t have abilities, nor was she in Judgement, but she was the most mindful of their group. The emotional glue. Even so, she was unable to know even a fraction of the burden of Tokiwadai’s Ace. Misaka Mikoto truly was on another level than the rest of them, just as Saten had suspected from the start. The issues she solved among their friend group was nothing like this. There was a reason why Saten’s intuition had led her to hold her prejudice against Level 5s before, and now she understood the reasoning. They were so above it all, above them, but in a way she hadn't expected. It was the things that they saw, something Saten couldn’t fathom. Troubles that apparently would shake the foundations of her own reality. Between the Level Upper and the chemaloids, Saten knew of the vicious greed that crept through the undergrowth of Academy City. Hell, even her urban legend site occasionally showed visions into another horrific world, and who knew how much of it was real. Whatever Misaka had seen was far beyond the realm of normal people, something that no average human was allowed to know, a burden that can only be shoulder by a true titan. But apparently, even they could crumble.

“I can’t… talk about it. I can barely think about that. There’s… too much.” For the first time since the beginning of the movie, Mikoto looked Saten in the eyes. “I appreciate everything you’ve done, I truly have. And perhaps…” _Perhaps I’ll let you meet them._

Saten stayed quiet, waiting. The ending never came.

“I should probably head back to the dorm. Kuroko will be back soon and she’ll have plenty that she wants to tell me.”

“Uiharu too. I want to hear that panty story.”

That was all it took to lift the overbearing mass that had clouded over them. Mikoto let out a huff of laughter, glancing at her with a wry smile. Saten suddenly lit up.

“I have an idea!” Saten exclaimed. “Let’s have a sleepover. Tonight.”

“Hah, I wish,” Mikoto sighed, ready to move on from whatever it was that had happened. “Nobody would be allowed overnight without approval weeks in advance. And that approval itself is nearly impossible to get, privileged almost exclusively to family members.”

“Ah c’mon now, you’re Tokidawai’s Ace, I bet you could pull some strings,” Saten urged, wiggling her eyebrows in a way that earned her a laugh.

“Well…” The so-called Ace blanched at the thought. She could ask the Mental Out user for her favored that was owed. “I suppose I could do _that…”_

Whatever that was, Saten wanted to know. “Yes, let’s do it! I’ll pack an overnight bag right now!” And with that, Saten slipped off the mattress and grabbed an empty bag from under the bed frame.

It wasn’t too much of an ask if it made her friends happy, especially after the trouble she caused. “Anything for you, Saten-san.”

“Ruiko.”

A faint blush bloomed on Mikoto’s cheek. “W-what?”

“You can call me Ruiko from time to time. Like now. If it’s too much, we could just say it when we’re alone.” She gave the bashful girl a reassuring smile, watching her fiddle with the blanket beneath her fingers. _Even with all that power, she just acts too cute sometimes,_ Saten thought, internally fawning over her friend.

“Ruiko.” She spoke hesitantly, as if it were a foreign word. Her blush spread all the way to the tips of her ears. “A-and you can call me Mikoto. Just when we’re alone though.”

“Alright, Mikoto,” she spoke softly, as if she’d shatter the moment if she was too loud.

The two silently moved around the room, tidying and packing. There was no issue in her friends meeting her sisters. Hell, Kongou had found out from sheer necessity but she hadn’t panicked. Not that she told Kongou that her sister Misaka 10032 was only one of the thousands of clones that were involved in a ruthless experiment in Academy City’s quest for absolute power. Maybe she could just let them know that they existed, but that in itself would lead to more questions. No matter which way Mikoto thought about it, anything she said was would open the can of worms, and her thoughts just circled back to how they couldn’t know about that. The inhumane nature of Academy City’s projects trapped her in from all sides, forcing her to be reliant on mostly herself, save for the outliers of the other Level 5s and Touma. She had been feeling more isolated from her friends the longer she went on, but she couldn’t let them get hurt. The cycle continued. Mikoto didn’t know how to break free.

“Hey, Saten-san?” Mikoto paused, tamping down her embarrassment. “Er, I mean, Ruiko. Thank you for being so understanding. About everything.”

“You’re welcome,” Saten responded, closing her overnight bag. She dropped her eyes to her feet before looking back at Mikoto, rubbing her thumb against the rough nylon straps of the bag. “And I was serious about you needing to talk to somebody. It may be selfish of me, but I don’t want to see you hurting like this anymore.”

She nodded and turned so Saten could no longer see her expression. “Mm.”

“I'll help you find someone. We’re all here for you no matter what. You don’t have to keep fighting when you’re with just us.”

“…Thank you.” A stiff pause. Then a glance. “And know that I’m here for you too. And not just for fighting people, but also the stuff I’m bad at. That… feeling part. I’ll always try for you, even if I fail.”

Saten gave her an earnest smile, not even trying to fight the light blush that appeared on her cheeks from her friend’s candid statement. “I know. That’s what I love about you, Mikoto.”

Suddenly feeling self-conscious again, Mikoto faced towards the door of the apartment. “A-anyways! Let’s go get that approval from the dorms now I guess, eh?” she stuttered, motioning for the Level 0 to come join her.

“Coming, coming,” Saten said, rolling her eyes. She caught up to the electromaster and led her out, locking the door behind her. Then, in a moment of boldness coming from wanting to make her friend blush again, she interlocked their arms and announced, “Let’s go, Miko-chan!”

“S-Saten-san!?”

“Aw, Mikoto, where did Ruiko go, huh?” she teased.

“Um, I, um- “

Saten laughed, leading her bright-faced, flustered friend away and to the prestigious school.

Even though Mikoto wasn’t able to let her in, Saten could see her heavy defenses weakening, her friend more willing to confide in her than before. She had wanted to tell her something, Mikoto just wasn’t ready yet. That was no issue to Saten. There was no rushing healing. It was her strong, unwavering conviction in the Ace who held inhuman strength, the monumental weight of the world, and unfaltering love that allowed her to relax. Despite everything, she truly believed that time would heal, that it would lessen the burden to a point where Mikoto could trust again. Pain can be for another day, one where Saten will be waiting, once again offering her compassion.

Saten fondly looked at her friend, still embarrassed by the nickname and the physical affection. Smiling, she held onto her friend tighter. _I believe in her,_ Saten thought. _Once she’s ready to rest, to share with us the burden, I’ll be there. We'll work through it. Together._

Faith.

\---

_tears never explained, but the healing already begun_

_tonight they relax_

_(a burden for another day)_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey thanks for reading! This was based off that comment Misaka said in Season 3 Episode 16 when Misaka, before using her first Indian Poker card, says she would’ve preferred a horror dream card instead of the happiness one. Babe, your life is a horror story. idk if she actually likes horror, or if the line was a gag for the next frame bc Kuroko was big lurking. Anyways, the movie I based it off of was IT, like that moment where that boy got his arm ripped off, and the setting/mood was from summer depression by girl in red. Maybe I’ll add another chapter with them hanging at the sleepover idk, but if I do it’ll probably be less heavy. Oh yeah, and that Shokuko stuff was for another story idea I had for this lil series.
> 
> Also, I think Saten could use some more love. She’s so cool! She really does help control the emotional direction of the group. But I don’t think even she could pry the truth from Misaka, and I don’t think she’d want to. Saten more makes Misaka face the truth, but doesn’t push her past her boundaries.
> 
> lmk if you have any ideas that I should explore!


	2. trust

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise chapter for the one person who asked! 
> 
> EDIT: Thank you for the kind comments!!:) I'll be doing some research for a bit, but after I have an outline done, I'll be extending this into full length story! Love your guys input!

Saten assumed that this was not the way that Misaka had expected to spend her night. She watched the two Level 5s of Tokiwadai Middle School bickering at each other on the staircase outside of the dorm, completely unsure of what to do.

“Oh, but Misaka-san, this goes far beyond the favor you owed me. You did call me all the way out here. I think I need a little something to balance it out,” the starry-eyed girl mused, touching the remote in her hands to her lips.

Mikoto’s irritation only rose. “Wha- This is such a small thing!” She stamped her foot in frustration.

“ _Misaka-san,_ ” Shokuhou drawled out in a disapproving sing-song voice, “you want me to break the rules of this institute? For personal benefit? And to top it off you act like a child. How shameful. But I must say, it is quite on-brand for you.”

“Breaking rules?” The electromaster gritted her teeth, holding back a jibe about gym class. Of course she knew that Shokuhou was just trying to get a rise out of her, but it worked every time, especially with the low jabs by calling her childish. But with a bit of restraint, she decided that she’d rather just be done with this situation. “Whatever, what do you want from me?”

“Hmm, how generous.” The Mental Out user began to mull it over, but Mikoto wasn’t quite sure if it was genuine or if she was just toying with her. “I’d like you to have a chat with me, right now.”

At that, Mikoto rolled her eyes. “Wouldn’t that defeat the purpose? All of my friends would just be hanging out without me, in my bedroom nonetheless.”

“Ah, but it’s also Shirai-san’s room, is it not? Let the two start the night first and I’ll send you up after I’m done.”

“Fine,” Mikoto relented. She sighed and turned to Saten. “Sorry, Saten-san, would you be able to just meet Kuroko in my room? Tell her I’ll follow you up soon.”

Saten just blinked dumbly at the two most powerful espers in the city before snapping back into her normal self, feeling slightly embarrassed. “O-oh, yeah, that’s no problem to me at all.

“Thank you so much for being okay with the inconveniences, Saten-san.” Shokuhou’s honeyed voice washed over her, the sweetness of her tone enticing, despite the warning bells it sent off in the back of her mind. It was like plump summer berries fresh from the bush, but only upon biting into one do you realize the poison it held. Perhaps she wouldn’t have felt this confusing mixture of admiration and alarm if not for Shirai’s dismay for how the two powerhouses seemed to be getting closer to one another.

“Yeah, thank you for helping us out,” Saten said with a tense bow of her head. Shokuhou’s clique had given her etiquette to use before, but she still felt on edge, knowing that she was most likely messing up something.

“Well, anything to help my _dear_ Misaka-san,” Shokuhou purred, grabbing the cranky girl by the upper arm and pulling her close. All the girl could do was sputter protests and glare, things that didn’t make Shokuhou even bat an eye. “Ah, now let’s get to that pesky Dorm Manager.”

The task was almost stupidly easy. The trio walked into the dorm building, where the Dorm Manager sat in wait, ready to snap the necks of misbehaving students. With a small _click!_ of her television remote, the Dorm Manager got up and walked away without saying a word.

“That’ll last for 24 hours, and she won’t bother you all for that time.”

Mikoto and Saten muttered their thanks before Saten was dismissed with a wave of Shokuhou’s hand. _Is this how all of the other Level 5s work?_ Saten thought. Maybe everybody else were just underlings, pawns, to those with that kind of power. Though Misaka had her flaws, she seemed to be one of the more sane Level 5s in the city, according to rumors. She was definitely quite kind to people in a way that seemed real, and her hot-headedness seemed to be a trait more associated with her youth rather than whatever complexes the rest of them had.

Once Saten had made her way up the familiar staircase to her friend’s room, she opened the door.

“Onee-sama!” Kuroko turned from behind her bed before looking disappointed. “Ah, Saten-san. Please, make yourself comfortable.”

“Thank you,” Saten responded, choosing to ignore the dispirited greeting.

“Where is Onee-sama?”

“Oh, she’ll be up soon,” Saten dismissed, knowing that Shirai would not enjoy hearing about Shokuhou.

Shirai took the answer without any questions and the two sat down on the beds, making small talk about the Judgement training, talking about their examinations that Kuroko seemed to have breezed through. They also touched on the infamous panty incident that featured Uiharu, causing them to giggle at the story again. Their conversation was a pleasant but uncommon event, as the two of them rarely hung out alone. The pair had the least natural connections out of their whole friend group. Shirai and Misaka were roommates, Uiharu and her were classmates, Uiharu and Kuroko were Judgement, and she and Misaka were, well, the “citizens” that got left out of the Judgement affairs. Hell, even Uiharu spent time with Misaka since she still idolized her to a degree. She and Shirai hadn’t intentionally avoided each other, it was just that they had to seek each other out more. It was nice for the two of them to be talking without the nagging or hijinks that often happen when they were in the group.

As they talked, Saten phone buzzed at a text. She looked down and read the message from Uiharu before relaying it to the teleporter.

_Be there in 10! Bringing the snacks!_

“I hope she remembers to bring those sodas Onee-sama has become fond of,” Kuroko thinks out loud, leaning back on her palms, face tilting towards the ceiling. “What could be taking Onee-sama so long?” 

“Heh, who knows…” Saten wonders.

They sit in silence before Saten decides to bring up what happened earlier that day. She hesitates then speaks.

“Hey, Shirai-san, speaking about Misaka-san, is she doing alright?”

Kuroko’s eyes snapped towards the Level 0 but otherwise remained impassive. “Why do you ask?”

“Well, she had a bit of an episode while we were at my place,” Saten said. “It reminded me of that time last summer where she had some issue but didn’t tell us.”

“I’m sure if Onee-sama was experiencing some sort of difficulty, I, along with you and Uiharu, would be the first that she would tell.”

There was almost a hint of willful ignorance in Kuroko’s tone, mixed with a bit of wariness. Was it because she didn’t want to betray Onee-sama’s trust or that she didn’t want to believe that her Onee-sama was still suffering and not trusting her?

“I’m just saying, this seemed bad. I think Misaka-san might need to get some sort of help for this,” Saten pressed, trying to show the importance of the subject was. Shirai and Misaka really were two sides of the same coin sometimes in their stubbornness.

“What was the nature of this episode?”

“It seemed pretty serious, like a panic attack. She wasn’t even talking to me for a bit. It’s like she couldn’t hear me,” Saten said. _Not to mention that she got sick._

Kuroko put her fist to her chin, thinking with a furrowed brow. “Maybe I will look into this. Thank you for bringing it to my attention, Saten-san.”

“It’s no problem. Even though it’s none of my business, let me know if everything turns out alright, okay? Whatever happened really freaked me out,” Saten admitted, thinking back to her friend.

Kuroko paused. “It frightens me too,” she whispered in a way that made Saten unsure if she was supposed to hear it. “Well, Onee-sama’s health is of my utmost concern. As her partner, I will support her in her struggles. So, please, don’t worry.”

“Alright.” Saten smiled. “I think-“

The two froze as the door clicked open.

“Hey guys-“

“ _ONEE-SAMA!!”_

Kuroko teleported directly into Mikoto’s arms, the momentum causing the pair to swing around in a circle. To Saten’s surprise, the older girl just laughed and placed the girl on the ground before getting some distance.

“Gee, Kuroko, you think you’d be tired from your Judgment training,” Mikoto chuckled, now keeping her eager kouhai at an arms-length away with one palm straight to her face.

“I’m never too tired for you, Onee-sama!” came Kuroko’s muffled reply. She leaned back, freeing herself from Mikoto’s grasp. “Where have you been?”

“O-oh, just getting stuff ready for the sleepover.”

“Oh?” Kuroko gave an impish smile and pressed her hands against her cheeks. “Perhaps making preparations for the two of us late in the night? Ah, Onee-sama, so romantic!”

Mikoto gave her a dead look. “No, not happening.”

“Aw, Onee-sama, you don’t have to be so bashful. Here, let’s show the world what we have!”

“Wait, Kuroko!”

The two girls continued their antics, chasing each other around the room. Saten knew that this behavior was fairly normal for the both of them, but she couldn’t help but think that both of them were acting a bit different. It was a sort of special lightheartedness that surrounded their antics, not the ones that usually ended with mild irritation and getting zapped. This time, Mikoto was running along with whatever Kuroko was doing and the younger was trying not to push past any boundaries. Well, at least not to the point where sparks were flying. Saten smiled and watched them go. It was easy to see the love between the two, the casual nudge back into normalcy from the heaviness Mikoto had experienced. It was exactly what she needed.

Eventually, two were interrupted by Uiharu’s arrival, saving Kuroko from a crushing suplex that Mikoto had been ready to unleash. The electromaster let her junior free at the sight of the plastic bags the other girl held. Uiharu smiled and held up the food.

“Who’d like to eat?”

The four girls gorged themselves on all the treats Uiharu had brought. It was a mix of vending machine drinks, convenience store snacks, and some dishes from a street stall that she had passed and apparently couldn’t ignore. All the food disappeared almost as quickly as it had come, but no one even noticed. They were too busy chatting, the conversation becoming nearly hysterical as Uiharu tried to stop Kuroko from embellishing her panty incident. It became a battlefield of Uiharu trying to silence the smaller girl as she teleported away when she tried to cover her mouth. They kept going until she could no longer make calculations, wheezing with laughter.

“N-no! Shirai-san, you are just making things up at this point!” Uiharu cried, beet red as finally was able to press her hand over the teleporter’s mouth.

“Aha, but it sounded exactly like what you said earlier! Right, Misaka-san?” Saten laughed, looking over at the electromaster.

Mikoto couldn’t even respond, laughing so hard that she had gone silent, smacking her hand on the side of her bedframe.

“Onee-sama calls officiate for the marriage!” Kuroko cried, wriggling out of the weaker girl’s hands.

“No! There’s no marriage!” Uiharu cried.

Her protests fell on deaf ears as the rest kept adding to the panty chronicles. The story just got more and more scandalous as it went along. Uiharu felt like she was going to explode from embarrassment, not used to them all ganging up on her like this. She crawled to Mikoto, feeling defeated.

“Help, Misaka-san…” she whimpered tearfully, tugging on the older girl’s sleeve.

Mikoto could barely even see, tears still clouding her eyes from the hysterics that practically immobilized the Level 5. With a bit of force, she calmed herself down enough to look back at her young friend who was begging her to save her from the teasing.

“Ha, whew, yeah, yeah Uiharu-san, alright. Stop teasing her guys,” Mikoto said, wiping over her cheeks.

Uiharu looked relieved. “Thank you, Misaka-san!”

She snickered again, trying in vain to keep back her laughter.

“It’s embarrassing to let the world know about what you and your husband do!” Mikoto said, barely able to finish before howling with laughter, setting the rest of the girls off again.

“Misaka-san!”

\---

Though Uiharu appreciated this conversation much better than the relentless teasing, she couldn’t say that anybody else was enjoying it more than Misaka was.

The electromaster was going underneath her bed and gathering up all of her Gekota merchandise, showing them all off with glee. The rest of the group, however, couldn’t understand the appeal.

“This one I got at a special arcade deal where I had to win a golden ticket, and there was only 20 in the machines! Man, I was so lucky, I don’t know of anybody else who has this one!” Mikoto showed off the fuzzy keychain gleefully.

“Oh, that one’s… cool?” Saten tried. She was always trying to encourage her friend to be more open with the things that she enjoyed, even if they were childish. Still, going through the inventory of her collection was a bit much.

“Isn’t it? I have so many other great ones too! Here, I’ll show you one that you might really like.” Mikoto rummaged under her bed, searching for her cherished Gekota.

The three underclassmen sat politely on the ground by Kuroko’s bed, watching their senpai enthuse over that little frog. It was clear that none of them were too terribly interested, but they were just trying to keep from making their friend upset. Mikoto gasped and started fishing out another box.

Saten bumped Kuroko in the ribs. “Shirai-san, can’t you make her stop?”

“Mmm, yes, I suppose. I was hoping Onee-sama would just wear herself out,” Kuroko confessed. “Though, her childish obsession is starting to irk me as well.”

Mikoto beamed and presented the latest Gekota, a small stuffed animal with a pink bunny ears headband and a yellow shirt. “This one is super cool! It’s a limited-time crossover Gekota that I purchased at the department store! Do you recognize it, Saten-san?”

Saten gave a forced smile. “Y-yeah, I might,” she lied.

“Really, Onee-sama, it’s not befitting of a young lady of your stature to go on and on, especially in front of guests,” Kuroko commented. “Besides, I think this one is the most insufferable of the bunch.”

Mikoto looked confused before looking at the toy, entirely downtrodden, hand stroking over the plush ears. “You don’t actually like Bunny, Kuroko?”

“No, I-“ Kuroko froze.

She flashed back to their one month anniversary, the two scrubbing out the pool walls together. She had been given a gift by her beloved partner, a yellow shirt with a little pink bunny on the front, something that she treasured still to this day. The same yellow and pink as that wretched Gekota. How dare she criticize the present that her Onee-sama painstakingly spent the day selecting, and had so lovingly granted to her with words of affection, promising to live their lives together? And now her Onee-sama was giving such a dreary look, one that she had caused. She couldn’t live with breaking her cherished Onee-sama’s fragile, maiden heart.

The teleporter gave a plastic smile and began to sweat heavily.

“…I like him, please go on.”

The two girls on either side of Kuroko stared at her in astonishment, but the teleporter was still too shell shocked to acknowledge them.

Mikoto bounced back immediately, going on about the rarity of crossovers in the Gekota franchise. They sighed, happy to have avoided offense, but also knowing that they subject to the next round of fangirling.

_But it wasn’t all a loss_ , Kuroko thought as she watched her Onee-sama squeeze the plush, eyes twinkling with excitement. Watching her Onee-sama smile like that was something the young teleporter could do all day.

But sadly, the harsh truth remained. They still had another half hour of Gekota frenzy.

\---

Sometime after the moon had risen well into the sky, the group felt an adventurous streak, moving their party up to the rooftop. They tried to play kick the can but stopped once an overeager Mikoto railgunned the poor thing across the city. Now each of them were lazily throwing Kuroko’s steel darts at the remaining empty cans.

“How many of these do you have, Shirai-san?” Uiharu asked as she flung another dart just wide of its target.

“A few hundred, but I keep around 40 on me at all times,” Kuroko answered, pinning another dart directly in the center of the can. It was fun to test her throwing skills without teleportation sometimes. Though, with the calculations regarding distance and velocity she constantly has running through her head, this task was still pretty simple.

Saten suddenly whooped, pointing at her little stack of cans. “I got that one perfectly on the top, look at that!”

“Nice!” Mikoto praised, giving her a thumbs up.

The younger girl gave a broad grin, soaking up the affirmations of the Level 5. “We should try doing some trick shots!”

“I think I’ll pass since I’m not even good at the basics,” Uiharu said, gesturing to the pile of steel darts that surrounded the can, none even close to touching.

“In that case, let’s split up into teams!” Saten proposed.

The group all let out words of agreement.

A grin crossed Saten’s face. “Then I call Misaka-san!”

“No!” Kuroko hissed, practically feral in the drop of a dime. “Onee-sama is with me! We are life partners for life!”

Mikoto sweatdropped. “Isn’t that a bit redundant?”

“Eh, but that would be totally unfair!” Saten argued. “You and Misaka-san are the best at this, so it’d be totally unfair if the two of you were paired.”

“Um, is this now a competition?” Uiharu asked meekly. “Because if so, I’d like to just watch.”

Mikoto decided to step in. “If it’s a competition now, let’s all figure out some cool trick shots and have Uiharu judge.”

“Sounds good to me,” Saten said.

Kuroko begrudgingly agreed. “I suppose some friendly competition is a healthy pastime.”

The four came up with some rules for their trick shot competition, which was mostly no teleporting and no railgunning. They would all figure out and practice their shot for the next 5 minutes before coming back and presenting them to Uiharu. The participants grabbed their cans and darts and shuffled to separate corners of the rooftop, trying to hide their secret move from the other.

Uiharu sat down, observing her friends throw around the little darts. They all had their own quirks, each taking different approaches. Shirai kept spear gunning those poor darts off of the building, popping in and out of the rooftop space as she fetched them. Saten kept banging the bottoms of the cans onto the cement and hitting her head with her palms, occasionally letting out a groan. Misaka… Well, Uiharu had no idea what was happening there, as her senior just loving stroked the can.

There was a certain feeling of sentimentality that welled in the girl’s chest. Who would’ve known a year ago how that she’d have so many friends, especially ones that had such valiant lifestyles? That thought humbled her. The excitement never stopped since the bank robbery that they had stopped by the crepe stand all those months ago. They grew together so naturally, it felt like Uiharu had never been lonely before in her life.

It was interesting that their personalities even worked with each other, all of them possessing some sort of bullheaded stubbornness. It was a feat in and of itself that their natures didn’t rip each other to pieces. Uiharu knew well that she clashed with the group with her steadfast beliefs, but at the end of the day, Saten made them hug and make up before Mikoto obliterated the bad guys. It was their constant cycle, something that never failed. Somehow, with all of the love and respect they held towards each other, they prevailed despite their differences, laughing it off the next morning.

Uiharu couldn’t believe how lucky she had got.

The timer buzzed on her phone, alerting her to call back her friends. They all scuttled back, varying levels of determination on their face.

“I will go first,” Kuroko haughtily announced, holding up her darts.

She positioned her cans so there were three upright in a tight row facing towards them and placed the fourth one a few inches behind that one on the ledge.

“Behold my prowess, Onee-sama!”

Mikoto sighed with exasperation. “Uiharu’s the judge, Kuroko…”

The teleporter ignored that comment, carefully examining her arrangement.

_Inhale, exhale…_

With a quick flick of the wrist, Kuroko sent her steel dart flying, spearing through the three cans, the force bumping the fourth to send it soaring over the edge. In a few seconds, she teleported over there and brought back the cans, showing them perfectly skewered triad with a smug grin.

“How would you rank this one, Uiharu?”

“That was amazing, Shirai-san!” the girl gushed, looking at the arrangement. “But I think we should announce the results once everybody has gone.”

“Hmm, I suppose that would be the best in regards to sportsmanship,” Kuroko huffed. “I think Saten should go next.”

Saten smiled, confident in her approach. “No problem.”

This arrangement was a bit more unusual. Saten placed a can upside on the ground that already had a dart in it, pointing menacingly out from the bottom straight towards the sky.

“Um, Saten-san, I think you’re supposed to show us the throw, not just the aftermath,” Uiharu said.

Saten laughed, completely confident. “Trust the process, my dear judge. Watch and learn.”

She took another can and placed the steel dart into the mouth of it, rattling to make sure it was really in there. She licked her lips before giving an underhand lob of her can, the momentum of the extra weight causing it to impale itself on the upright dart it a ‘T’ shape.

With a cry of glee, Saten ran over and carefully picked up the structure, worried that it’d fall over before bringing it back.

“Look at that!” Saten remarked. “I think I should get bonus points for creativity.”

“No ranking until the end,” Kuroko warned.

“That’s true,” Uiharu said. “And we still have Misaka-san left.”

The said girl had been unusually quiet and cool this whole time. She only had one can and one dart, unlike the other two’s ensemble.

“Mm. Hey, Uiharu-san, would you set my can down? Anywhere will do.”

She reached out and grabbed the single can. “Of course!”

Uiharu walked out and set the can down in a random spot.

“Thank you.” The electromaster turned around, back facing the can, and closed her eyes. “Saten-san, can you spin me, like you’d do with a watermelon split?”

The dark haired girl obliged, hands resting on her shoulders as she gave her a few turns, stopping so she was still facing away from her target. Mikoto shook her head to find her balance, eyes still squeezed shut. Then she tossed the dart up and over her head in a large arc, hitting directly through the opening of the can to the bottom with a _tink!_

Uiharu gaped.

Kuroko and Saten wouldn’t accept it.

“Onee-sama, we weren’t going to use our abilities!” she scolded.

“Yeah, Misaka-san, that was totally cheating,” Saten added. “Did you use your magnetism?”

Mikoto frowned. “Well, no, not really. And you can’t magnetize aluminum anyways.”

“Then how did you do it?” Uiharu asked.

“Well, I did use my abilities a little beforehand, but not during the competition,” Mikoto confessed. “Aluminum is paramagnetic, meaning it only has a weak attraction to outside magnetic fields, so I wouldn’t really be able to get much from that anyway. But cans have other trace metals in them, so I agitated some of the iron within it so I’d be able to get a better sense of its magnetic field was like before I let it be. Once I did that, I was able to sense it, even from here. Then, EM waves provide me with a picture of the space around me, so I don't need to be looking at it. In fact, I don't even need to open my eyes. Plus, I have a fairly good grasp of the 3-dimensional space and projectiles from all my calculations with my railgun. So, yeah, that was pretty much it.”

The underclassmen gave a round of “ohs” and politely clapped. It made sense that this complexity would happen when challenging the mighty Level 5 to a simple game of darts.

Uiharu was probably the most impressed, feeling that bit of reverence for the older girl swell inside of her again.

“I think Misaka-san is the winner,” Uiharu whispered.

“What!?”

The other girls instantly protested, surrounding her, their arguments overlapping the others. Uiharu held up her hands to shield herself.

Mikoto took the win, just twirling another dart between her fingers, watching the flower-headed girl weakly fight against her ferocious underclassmen.

“Well, I think Uiharu has done the best out of all of us,” Mikoto said, placing a hand on the girl’s shoulders.

Uiharu smiled gratefully at her senior. “Thank you, Misaka-san!”

She hadn’t even seen the mischievous grin that the electromaster and her best friend shared.

“Yeah, Uiharu, you had the best shot of the day,” Saten said.

“Huh?”

“The panty shot!”

Ah, that.

She would never be free.

\---

Kuroko didn’t know when she woke up, but couldn’t help but noticed the lack of a certain presence. Forcing open her bleary eyes, she only saw Uiharu and Saten lying next to her on their makeshift bed, Mikoto nowhere to be found. Ah, that was right. When they finally got worn out and came down to sleep, they had pushed the two mattresses on the floor in the middle of the room so they wouldn’t argue over who would fight with who. Or, more so because Kuroko wouldn’t let up on her wishes to sleep with her Onee-sama so they made this compromise. She blinked back the haze from her dreams and looked at the glowing clock through the dimly-lit room.

_4:17 a.m._

Sleep still gripped at the edges of her consciousness, but was aware enough to notice was strange for her Onee-sama to be gone while company was here, especially after the trouble they’d gone through to let this happen. Kuroko listened closely, not hearing anything from the bathroom or hallway. It was only after a glance around the room did she see the open window, a slight breeze blowing through the curtains and moonlight illuminating the floorboards. With a sigh, she quietly teleported out the window to the front lawn, letting the faint light of the streetlamps guide her way. While she was sure there was nothing to be worried about, it was just bad hosting to leave her friends after all. However, she couldn’t help but feel a bit off-put by her brief talk with Saten earlier in the evening.

There was something about that conversation that really scratched against Kuroko’s mind. She wasn’t stupid. Sometimes she had caught the moments of weakness, the fitful sleep, getting up in the middle of the night to pace restlessly. Other times she found her Onee-sama in rare a pensive state with a far-off look in her eyes, not even acknowledging the world around her. It was the remnants of whatever had happened all those months ago. The things that had set off the older girl earlier had shifted the whole mood of the night, her being much less brash than usual. It was subtle, but to Kuroko it was plain as day, with the gentle treatment and the pampering by arranging their slumber party. Hell, Kuroko hadn’t been zapped since yesterday. Their love was normally shown in teasing, pushing each other’s buttons until one gave a reaction. They were only easy on each other when one couldn’t take any of the extra stress, and it seemed her Onee-sama was definitely troubled.

Worry gnawed in her stomach as the teleporter’s eyes swept the courtyard, finding no signs of her Onee-sama. Just before she gave up her search she heard a faint humming of an indistinct tune. She looked up and saw the familiar cartoonish pajama on swinging legs off the top of the building. With a few quick jumps, Kuroko stood on the roof a few feet behind Mikoto. The electromaster didn’t even turn at her kouhai’s sudden presence, remaining sat on the ledge, legs dangling over the edge. Her focus remained outwards and towards the sky, watching the twinkling stars overhead. The only sign that she even noticed her was that she stopped humming her song.

“What are you doing up, Onee-sama?” Kuroko asked in a low voice, hesitant to disturb the still atmosphere.

At first, Mikoto didn’t respond, not even acknowledging the question. Then,

“I wanted to see the stars.”

It shouldn’t have scared Kuroko, but she couldn’t help but feel her anxiety from her earlier conversation grow. It was the same sentence she said when she came home all those months ago, beat up and withdrawn, right before she shut them out. Not to mention Mikoto’s proximity to the edge of the rooftop. The whole scene screamed of her Judgement trainings, of situations that she had hoped she’d never experience. She felt compelled to speak.

“Onee-sama, I wanted to discuss your health. Saten-san seemed to be worried earlier today from some incident that happened,” Kuroko said gently, hoping not to irritate the girl. “I want you to know that I’m here for all your struggles, none are too big or too small for me to handle. You can rely on me in your times of need.”

There was no response. Kuroko felt uneasy at the stillness of her Onee-sama. It wasn’t like her to be so quiet. She hadn’t even turned to look at her kouhai yet, still rooted in the same position as when Kuroko arrived. Nevertheless, Kuroko pressed on.

“If there is an urgent matter, I could help you solve it. O-or if it’s not, perhaps I can direct you to a professional who can help you. As a member of Judgment, I’ve been trained in that matter. I can get you whatever you need, Onee-sama, as long as you just talk to me.” The silence stretched on, making her attempt to reach Mikoto seem even more futile. “Please, it hurts me when you shut me out. Sometimes I worry about the trouble that you get into or that you may have been hurt. I want to be of service to you, Onee-sama, I can’t stand just feeling like somebody so untrustworthy of you. Let me be there for you, please.”

Kuroko choked on her words, unable to continue. She knew it was her fatigue and the soft moonlight that weakened her emotions, loosened her tongue, but she couldn’t help but gulp over the lump in her throat and rub at her misty eyes. From her training, she knew that she shouldn’t be getting overly emotional in these situations, but she couldn’t help it. With no information, how could she not assume the worst?

Finally, Mikoto shifted.

“Mm.”

The Ace patted the spot next to her, saying nothing more. Making sure there were no indications of her bout of despair, Kuroko made her way beside her Onee-sama, shivering as she sat on the ledge. Even in the summer, the cold concrete bit through her thin pajamas.

To Kuroko’s surprise, Mikoto wrapped an arm around her shoulder and tugged her in close. A blush rose up her cheeks, but she dared not disturb such a moment.

“Hey, Kuroko,” came a hushed voice, “do you know anything about the constellations?”

She blinked. “Well, besides the necessities of navigation, I do not know much about them.”

“I’ve come to love them. They really are beautiful.”

Mikoto leaned in closer to Kuroko, lips brushing past her ear, unintentionally setting off a fierce blush in the teleporter. With her free hand, Mikoto pointed her finger straight down Kuroko’s line of sight up to the sky.

“Our dorm faces north, which is great for finding recognizable points in the sky. See? That’s Ursa Major, and if we trace a straight line to the right, we can find Polaris, the North Star.” Mikoto lowered her arm. “But I bet you knew that, huh, Kuroko?”

Kuroko just leaned further into Mikoto’s shoulder, soaking up the warmth, giving a small noise of affirmation.

“And the North Star is connected to Ursa Minor, the smaller version of Ursa Major. In stories, the two are mother and son.” Mikoto pauses. “The stories that make up the constellations are really weird. But you know me, I kind of like those sort of things.”

“I didn’t know you enjoyed stargazing so much, Onee-sama,” Kuroko commented.

“Well, I’ve always like to look at them in that mushy, romanticizing way, but only recently have I started to really learn. I’ve been reading some space magazines in the corner store more often these past few months.”

“Reading without actually buying them?” Kuroko accused.

Mikoto laughed. “Yeah, you know me too well sometimes, Kuroko. But I’ve actually learned all of them for this season. Like this one, it took me so long to find, especially with the light pollution of Academy City.” Mikoto tilted her head back and pointed her finger directly up into the middle of the sky.

“I don’t know what I’m looking at,” Kuroko deadpanned, squinting up at the randomly assorted pinpricks of light.

“I couldn’t see it for a while, but that’s Hercules. That sort of rectangle shape is his body and the stars around it are his arms and legs.”

“I… I see rectangles, but I cannot see how that could be a person,” Kuroko admitted. “And constellations have such a superstitious air about them, so it isn’t my cup of tea.” She frowned, then blanched at her misstep. “But of course I enjoy watching them with you, Onee-sama!”

“It’s okay.” The arm around Kuroko’s shoulder gave a squeeze. “Am I boring you?”

“No, please, Onee-sama, go on,” Kuroko encouraged. Though it wasn’t a topic Kuroko was too interested in, she didn’t hate it. Not to mention that she had already insulted her beloved once tonight, despite knowing that she may have been in a fragile state of mind. Kuroko wanted to bash her face into the concrete for her stupidity.

“Hah, alright,” Mikoto said. She continued to gaze into that space before letting out a huff of laughter. “You know, out of all the constellations I’ve learned, Hercules has the most interesting story.”

“Of course he does. He probably is one of the most famous warriors of ancient times. There’s that animated movie as well, that I have no doubt that you’ve watched.”

Mikoto chuckled, the shutter of her laughter spreading through to Kuroko. The younger girl nearly glowed at the intimacy between the two of them, butterflies in her stomach.

“You know, that movie was nothing like the real story. In the movie, everybody loved him, he breezed through all of his challenges, and he got the girl in the end. The original was nothing like that. He was born stronger than everybody else, and they just kept making him stronger, starting when he was just a baby. He was just trying to live a good life with his family, but somebody ruined his life, all for a problem that wasn’t his. They killed his family. His blood. He was forced to labor and kill; he was temporarily insane for a bit. He had to overcome the impossible tasks. And when he finally won, there was no big reward. He didn’t get his family back, but at least he was free. But then people wouldn’t leave him alone. The problems followed him everywhere, like he never really got freed. And then they killed him. He was just a toy for the gods, a byproduct of a feud, all for the people who were supposed to take care of him. He didn’t ask to be born with power, but they still ruined his life. You know, when does it end? Where are the roses and finish line? There’s never that happy ending. I just…” Mikoto trailed off.

At some point in that story, Mikoto’s hands had begun to tremble. Kuroko placed her hand on her thigh, thumb rubbing small circles on her thigh. She tried to look at to read her expression but Mikoto was still looking straight towards the heavens.

“Onee-sama?” she asked, concerned.

“Y’know, Kuroko, you’ve been such a good friend to me. I’m not sure if I deserve that kind of faith.”

She pulled away to finally look at Kuroko’s face for the first time that since she arrived. There was something in her eyes that Kuroko couldn’t detect, some sort of maturity that she’d never seen. Mikoto was giving her that caring smile, the one that only a senior who truly loves her junior could give. A rarity. It was that smile with a tenderness that existed for her only, one that banished any doubts that Kuroko had about their relationship. A feeling bubbled up within her, some sort of gentle love that settled in her heart, and she couldn’t help but return it.

“I don’t want you to be worrying about me anymore, I’m getting the help I need now.”

That was a surprise to Kuroko. “Really?”

“Yeah, really. Don’t be so surprised. I wouldn’t want to be stressing out my kouhai, now would I?” Mikoto grinned, placing her hand on the crown of Kuroko’s head. “Don’t worry, your Onee-sama is taking care of it.”

“Onee-sama…” Kuroko sniveled, feeling almost overwhelmed by the affection she was getting.

Mikoto gave her a light pat on the head before lowering her arm. The electromaster tipped her head back, viewing again at the constellations, before letting out a low sigh. “Let’s talk more about it tomorrow. I’m feeling pretty tired.”

Kuroko wistfully agreed. For one last time, she soaked in this private little world they had made. Her Onee-sama in only her silly Gekota pajamas, bathed in the roof’s moonlight, giving her such a fond look that it made her heart pound, feeling like she truly belonged together. It was in these sorts of moments that Kuroko could feel the overwhelming compassion that Ace held. It reminded her of why she fell so hard for her Onee-sama. How she finds herself smitten every single day. And it was all privilege to Kuroko alone.

Kuroko knew the moment had to end, and she placed her hand on Mikoto’s shoulder, jumping them the two floors back into their room. There Uiharu and Saten still slept soundly, not noticing the departure or return. Mikoto carefully lowered herself next to Saten on the mattress, trying not to disturb either of them. Once Mikoto was settled, back pressed against Saten’s, Kuroko slipped in beside of them, as close as she dared to be to her Onee-sama.

It was only once Kuroko’s body settled into the soft mattress did she allow her tired mind to relax. Almost instantly did she detect the soft feeling tugging at the edges of her consciousness, the warmth from her Onee-sama so close lulling her to sleep.

And in the morning, she couldn’t tell if the sweet voice next to her ear, the hushed “thank you”, was a dream or not.

Trust.

\---

_sombers and glees,_

_and my nights, and my doubts, and my friends,_

_my beautiful, credible friends_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you wanted to know what song Misaka is humming, it’s the Gondola Song! That whole last scene is inspired by the lie that she uses the day after she first discovers the sisters project and watched Misaka 9982 get murdered. Also I thought it would be on brand for Misaka to want to do something nice for her friends (the sleepover) when she’s feeling down, like when she bargained for Uiharu to get that fancy rice cooker when she first met Nunotaba or when she got them all food when she first saw the Sisters Project. One of my best friends is my underclassman, and I tend to spoil her a bit whenever I’m feeling down so I totally get that feeling.
> 
> Poem is from “All My Friends Are Finding New Beliefs” check it out!
> 
> Didn’t plan on writing a part 2! Now I’m juggling between making a separate Shokuhou story, or making this one just a longer thing of “get Misaka to therapy” w more chapters lol. Feel free to tell me what you think! Also planning on writing a long piece, one equivalent to an arc! We’ll see if it works out aha
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	3. of two titans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Now that I'm expanding this story, I'd just like to note the setting! It's one year past the Sisters project, so Misaka is in her final year at Tokiwadai. For the most part, I'm only using Railgun anime canon, but there's sprinkles of other Raildex things, I just haven't watched/read the rest of it.

The next day Kuroko floated through the dormitory, ethereal. A separate plane of existence. Ascended.

Being so close to her Onee-sama last night, who had been so vulnerable and had shown her plenty of attention, gave the love-sick teleporter such a rush that she believed she would be able to run on that alone for days. Just thinking about how the electromaster’s strong arm had been wrapped around her made her pulse quicken.

_Ah, so Onee-sama_ did _plan a romantic moonlight escapade with me! What could be next? A candle-lit date with cocktails? An intimate retreat to a beach-side home? Or maybe… Onee-sama is ready… AH!!_

The rest of the group was completely ignoring Kuroko, who was deeply entangled in her own fantasies. They had already set the room back to its original state, with the freshly made beds back on the frames. Mikoto was made sure that Saten and Uiharu had gathered all of their belongings before thanking them for coming over and giving them a farewell.

With a sigh, Mikoto sat on her bed, rubbing her hand against her cheek. Though she enjoyed being with her friends, the events of the previous day were heavy, to say the least. She still couldn’t believe she had behaved that way in front of Saten. It made her burn with shame thinking about the pitiful look she had been given, gazing at the Ace of Tokiwadai who was reduced to a puddle on the bathroom floor from a simple movie.

She got up and started to get dressed for the day, knowing that her thoughts wouldn’t stop unless she got going. After slipping on her beige vest, she lightly knocked Kuroko on the head, breaking the younger girl out of her stupor.

“Oi, c’mon Kuroko,” Mikoto grunted. “Let’s go eat our breakfast.”

Kuroko gazed at her with unfettered adoration. “Yes, Onee-sama. Let’s go.”

That look alone made Mikoto shudder.

They made their way down to the food hall and to eat their breakfast by their usual table by the window. Mikoto picked at the food on her plate, not completely in the mood for breakfast but knowing she’d be chastised by her roommate if she didn’t eat. Not that the food was bad, actually it was quite the contrary. It was just that the electromaster had been having less of an appetite as the days went by. When she would try to throw away what was on the plate, Kuroko would scold her, saying that her growing body needed fuel. So Mikoto picked at her omelette, trying to ignore the hot food going down.

The two made idle light conversation, saying how nice it was to hang out with their friends and not worry about the overbearing presence of the dorm supervisor. 

“By the way, how were you able to have her leave us alone?” Kuroko asked, mixing her rice and natto together.

Mikoto looked away. “Oh, I called in a favor.”

Her roommate frowned and set down her chopsticks. “You wouldn’t have happened to ask Shokuhou Misaki, would you?” Kuroko accused, eyes narrowed.

Mikoto took a long, long drink of her tea.

“You _have_ been getting more acquainted with one another,” Kuroko noted, scrunching her nose in distaste. “I thought you two barely tolerated each other.”

“Well, now that I’ve been getting lessons from Hokaze-san, I have to pay her back somehow,” Mikoto defended. “So I give her my time, and she wants me to spend it with Shokuhou.”

“I can’t understand the appeal.”

“Shokuhou says having another Level 5 around helps to ease Hokaze-san,” Mikoto said, “and if it really helps her relax, I don’t mind doing it. Who knows how uptight being Shokuhou’s #2 makes a person.”

“My goodness, Onee-sama, sometimes you are too kind for your own good.” Kuroko crosses her arms and thinks. “But if that’s true, then why would Shokuhou owe you anything?”

Mikoto bounced her legs underneath the table and stared out the window, purposefully avoiding her roommate’s gaze before letting out a nervous exhale. “Well…”

\---

It was not too long after the Exterior incident that Hokaze had tried to push the two Level 5s together, despite how futile the endeavor was. Neither of them wanted to be around one another. No matter what, Shokuhou just rubbed Mikoto the wrong way and Shokuhou just barely endured her enough to make fun of her. The only reason why they were begrudgingly together was at Hokaze’s insistence upon their deal; lessons in control of her bioelectricity in exchange for lunches with the Queen. But then Indian Poker became a bigger issue, one that led back to the Doppelganger. They were forced to team up again. And then more issues appeared, and they found themselves centered in another fight together. Again and again, until Mikoto became Shokuhou’s de facto muscle for whatever she couldn’t let her clique get involved with. While they still ground against each other, the bitter hostility between the two had faded into a partially amicable relationship, or, more accurately, a ceasefire. 

It was only a few weeks ago that Mikoto had done a raid of a laboratory that had been working with materials very similar to the lab that had housed the Exterior. They were having a discussion at one of those all-organic, overpriced bakeries that the blonde enjoyed so much. To Mikoto, they all tasted fairly similar, so having to wait longer for their food and drink was just a nuisance.

The electromaster had felt irritated. She didn’t want to serve Shokuhou again, but of course, she would’ve done it for free anyway. But this time she had decided to make a deal. She laid out her demands in a firm tone.

“Oh, is that so?” Shokuhou had said. “How interesting, especially from you, Misaka-san.”

Mikoto held her ground. “Yeah, I don’t want to be your laborer anymore with no rewards.” It was a bluff, but Shokuhou had humored her. Though Shokuhou couldn’t read into her mind, she could read her body language just fine. She just watched the chestnut-haired girl intently, stirring her tea a few times before answering.

“Very bold indeed,” Shokuhou had mused. “I’ll take the deal.”

The deal was a single favor, one of similar value to the task Mikoto would be carrying out. That night, Mikoto wiped all of the memory banks and destroyed the delicate instruments that they had been basing their findings on, a simple task for an electromaster. The next morning she had been alerted that the company was deciding to “switch directions,” and it was no doubt that the Mental Out user had pulled some strings with some benefactors. It was probably a fairly simple thing to do after Mikoto had trashed the place, causing the facility to lose millions in assets. Whatever happened afterward was Shokuhou’s business. 

When Mikoto had texted Shokuhou to cash in the favor, she had been surprised at the resistance. After that breakdown, Mikoto wasn’t in the mood to be toyed with, but she had let Saten leave before launching into an argument.

“What is your problem?” Mikoto growled. “I thought we had made a deal last time.”

Shokuhou gave her a reproving stare, eyes half-lidded. “You finally broke in public.”

Mikoto felt exposed, stepping back in shock before getting angry. “You looked into my friend’s memories,” she spat.

“Her thoughts were practically screaming at me,” she stated simply, tossing her hair over her shoulders. “My ability just allowed me to access it easier.”

“Well if you knew what happened, why wouldn’t you let me leave so I can make it up to them?” Mikoto spoke low, trying to keep herself in control. A mixture of anger and anxiety welled up within her, and clenching her fists were all that she could do to stop from letting a stray spark fly. What had happened was an anomaly that Mikoto was planning to not let happen again.

“Hmm, that is a good question, isn’t it?” 

Her indifference pissed off the electromaster. “That’s it, I’m-”

“I’ve known that this might happen since your Level 6 Shift attempt.” Mikoto bristled. “I knew they couldn’t totally control you, only turn your own thoughts against you. Though, I am surprised at your handle of the situation. You could even say I am impressed by your restraint, especially for being such a muscle head.”

“Look,” Mikoto interrupted. “I’m not in the mood to get made fun of over this. Let me go be with my friends.”

“Here’s the deal, Misaka-san,” the Mental Out spoke. “You are my best handyman-”

“Not a handyman.”

“-but you could easily make my work much harder. I don’t need another one of _those_ Level 5 in this city. You need therapy,” she finished.

Appalled was not a strong enough word for Mikoto at that moment. “I am _not_ crazy,” she seethed. “And I’ve met with all the other Level 5s that lost their minds. I am nothing like them.”

“Did I say you were crazy, hmm? No?” Shokuhou met her eyes with heavy intensity. “I’ve seen it in your friends, or when you think I’m not paying attention. Your behavior, it’s worrisome. They are most likely talking about the incident right now. You can either deal with it now, with me who knows your secrets, or watch your friends stumble over themselves to find a solution. Which would you pick?”

Mikoto sighed and roughly jerked her fingers through her bangs. “What do you want me to do?”

She watched Shokuhou rummage in her bag before procuring a business card. “Here. I normally keep some on me in case my followers are experiencing troubles. This is my therapist’s practice; a private service I bought completely cut from Academy City’s grasp.”

The Ace knit her eyebrows in concern. “Your therapist? Is everything okay?”

“Oh, Misaka-san, your earnestness is so endearing. No wonder why all your friends are in love with you, despite your precipitous behavior.”

Mikoto scowled, suddenly self-conscious. There was Shokuhou’s average teasing. The mental esper knew exactly how to execute those back-handed compliments in a way that would affect her.

“But,” Shokuhou continued,” don’t feel ashamed. Seeing the dark side of Academy City is not for the faint of heart. And for the things that we’ve seen, well, it’s no surprise that some others were not able to handle it as well. Even I have had to use such services.”

“Thank you, Shokuhou,” she said truthfully, placing the small card in her pocket. “But I don’t really think I’ll be using this.”

The metal esper let out a hum. “Disappointing, but I can’t say I’m surprised. You’re willing to let your friends continue to worry over this?”

“No,” Mikoto said too quickly, showing her defensiveness. “That’s why we’re doing this tonight. To put them at ease.”

“It’s not a successful tactic, believe me,” Shokuhou stated flatly, who examined her remote closely, not meeting her eyes. Mikoto couldn’t help but feel empathy towards her classmate, knowing there was much more behind that statement.

Maybe, sometimes, Mikoto could see how they were alike. They were two Level 5s, miles above others in concern of abilities. Idolized and victimized by Academy City’s overbearing system. Perhaps they could still become friends, now that they were acting so familiar with one another. Shokuhou, of all people, was getting her support. To be honest, it was quite touching.

“My, my, Misaka-san,” Shokuhou sighed, “you are my most taxing muscle. Very high-maintenance.” The illusion was shattered. “I can’t believe you didn’t notice it yourself. You really do have no introspective ability,” Shokuhou whined with another exaggerated sigh. She touched her remote against her cheek with a pout. “For being so boorish, you are quite difficult to crack.”

Mikoto swore she felt a blood vessel pop. “What am I, a glowstick!?”

No, they still would never be friends.

Once Mikoto was free, she had rushed up the stairs to get to her friends. Yes, it was a treat for them, but it was also exciting to have such a thing in their dorm. She was about to open the door before she heard the seriousness of her friend’s voices.

“-experiencing some sort of difficulty, I, along with you and Uiharu, would be the first that she would tell.”

“I’m just saying, it seemed bad.”

Mikoto’s heart dropped. Her stupid rival had been right. Here were her friends, talking and worrying over her. It’s not like she could tell them what had happened, nor could she ensure that such an incident would never happen again; not with the lurking dangers that shrouded the city. Mikoto backed up and leaned against the opposite wall with a sigh, fingertips brushing over the ink of the therapist’s card that she’d been given. No, she’d never admit to Shokuhou that she took up her offer. But listening to her friend’s in her room, worrying about things she knew that they’d never be allowed to know, she couldn’t be idle.

_Fine._

\---

Mikoto gave her roommate a vague recap, only talking about the favor owed and Shokuhou’s demands, nothing on her status as “the muscle” for the other Level 5 or the overheard conversation.

“...And so I emailed the guy and set up an appointment for the weekend before school restarts,” she finished.

“Be careful, Onee-sama,” Kuroko warned. “She could be trying to learn what’s in your head.”

“Yeah, I thought about that,” Mikoto admitted. “But I’m very aware of the signs of her brainwashing, so if she duped the therapist, I’d spot it. Plus, she did seem serious.”

“You really _are_ becoming friends, aren’t you?” the younger girl gasped. “Taking advice from Shokuhou Misaki of all people.”

“No, no, not friends,” Mikoto corrected quickly. “It’s just... beneficial for both of us to stay in top form.”

“Alright, I put my trust into you,” Kuroko grumbled. “Though I selfishly admit I wished it had been _me_ getting you support.”

Mikoto chuckled. “You give me support every day. Now, do you want the rest of this rice?” she asked, pushing her plate towards her friend

There was a hopeful glint in Kuroko’s eyes. “W-what is this? An indirect kiss from Onee-sama?”

“Hey,” the Ace warned.

Kuroko looked euphoric with the small bits of leftover rice, not saying any more as she ate. So much for the nagging to finish her meals.

If she was honest with herself, Mikoto felt nothing but unease at the thought of going to the therapist. It freaked her out. Yet, she couldn’t shake that passing moment of vulnerability that Shokuhou had shown. It was unlike anything she’d seen before. 

_What was that?_

\---

It was finally the day she had been dreading this day all week. Her first therapy appointment.

Thankfully, she had a busier schedule today so she wouldn’t be anxiously anticipating the session. Since the Level 6 Shift Project a year ago, every other weekend Mikoto made sure to visit her sisters at the hospital. She had been trying to hold up her promise to Misaka 10032 to help them adjust to everyday human life, one without the overarching loom of death. Today they decided to have a picnic. The summer weather was mild and sunny, and Mikoto had brought a full spread of onigiri, skewers, fruits, and a small cake. Depending on the day, she would hang out with any number of the sisters, from just Misaka 10032 to all ten that remained in Academy City. This time there were only two sisters, but Mikoto didn’t mind. She hoped that this inconsistency was an indicator that they were beginning to develop their own individual personalities. Or, more likely, they had some other project of their own but still wanted to spend time with her. The experience would go straight into the Misaka Network, so, in a sense, it was like Mikoto was with all of them anyway. 

The trio chatted and Mikoto got caught up in all the newest news from the sisters. 

“Oh, you guys are trying out video games now?” Mikoto asked.

“‘Yes,’ says Misaka, pulling out the evidence.” She took out a tablet and showed the screen to Mikoto. “‘We have created a 24-hour livestream with one Misaka playing at all times,’ explains Misaka.”

“Oh!” That must be why some of the other sisters in town were away. Mikoto watched as the colorful little avatars ran about the screen. “That seems like a lot of fun, guys.”

The other clone spoke up. “‘Yes, the researchers have provided the Misakas at all of the laboratories with consoles so now we are able to connect in different ways,’ says Misaka, happy to show Onee-sama their newest engagement.”

_At least they’re happy,_ Mikoto thinks.

“Well, just make sure to not do this all the time,” Mikoto advised, popping another grape into her mouth. “This kind of thing can rot your brain, you know.”

“‘So will your interests, Onee-sama,’ says Misaka, thinking of Onee-sama’s childish tastes.”

“Hey now…”

“‘Let me show you the other videos,’ says Misaka, skillfully averting Onee-sama’s thought patterns.”

The electromaster let out a chuckle. “Yeah, sure, why not.”

They huddled around the laptop as the sisters showed off their records to Mikoto, who had no idea what the point was but enjoyed it nonetheless. She laughed as she thought about how viewers must think it’s crazy that one person was playing 24 hours a day, not knowing there was a horde of clones behind the stream. The trio was so deeply invested in their time together, grateful to see their Onee-sama happy, that they hadn’t even noticed the presence that lurked behind.

\---

It was official. Mikoto hated the therapist. Dr. Uyeno Yashiro was a kind and respectful man in his mid-30s, with soft, tousled brown hair. He sat in a rolling chair near his desk, where he kept an assortment of different papers. In Mikoto’s eyes, he was an intrusive little nerd. Every time Mikoto said something he wanted to remember, he would respond and then look at his paper, pushing his thick tortoiseshell glasses farther up his nose. Maybe it was harmless, and maybe Mikoto was feeling too self-conscious, but she didn’t like him. She was glad that she got to sit farther away on the couch, the table in front of her adding even more distance.

The first half of the session was testing to see if Shokuhou had been controlling the man, throwing different questions at him and carefully looking at his eyes. He assured her that Shokuhou’s influence didn’t affect the session, but if needed, he would let the mental esper put a guard over his mind so he couldn’t talk about her issues with other people. That was tempting. 

The latter half was even worse, with him asking different questions to try and “figure out where they were” together. _We’re nowhere, idiot,_ Mikoto thought, irritated. 

He had promised that everything was confidential and that he was aware of the darkness of the city, which is why he assumed she was here. That comment pissed her off. It was true, but she hated how he knew the answer already, even if it was obvious. She gave him vague answers of how loved ones were hurt by Academy City’s twisted experiments a year ago, not willing to tell a stranger about the existence of the Sisters, and how she had been working with Shokuhou to foil others schemes that may cause harm. She picked up one of the weird objects on the table, a wooden ring with heavy beads, and began to fiddle with it, trying her best to hold back the urge to crush it.

“I noticed that you seemed uncomfortable the whole time you were here,” Dr. Uyeno mentioned.

“Yeah, I didn’t want to be here,” Mikoto snapped.

“Then why did you come?” he asked, voice lacking any hostility.

“I-” She inhaled, thinking. Why did she? “I’m not sure.”

He gave a patient smile. “I understand. Well, our time’s about up, so why don’t you go see the secretary up front to schedule the next appointment, okay?”

“Okay,” the electromaster grumbled, getting off the couch. 

“I’ll see you next time, Misaka-san,” Dr. Uyeno said.

“Mm, yeah.” And Mikoto was gone. 

Thank goodness that nightmare was over. Her stomach was in knots and her hands felt jittery, like she had chugged those canned coffees that Kuroko enjoyed. The whole experience made her horribly uncomfortable, especially the mild nature of the therapist. He just had asked her invasive questions with no shame at all. How could somebody like Shokuhou take this? She hated it.

But for some reason, she did what the therapist had said and scheduled another appointment. 

Once she left the practice, she had been antsy, ready to hit up the arcade to get out some of her energy. Unfortunately, she ran into one of the people she never wanted to see.

“So, how was it?” Shokuhou sang, worsening Mikoto’s already sour mood.

“Shut up,” was all she said before brushing past that starry-eyed cow. 

Shokuhou blinked, watching Mikoto leave before she allowed a slight smile. That bullheaded electromaster finally had a bit of sense. 

\---

_the meeting of two titans_

_either to return in triumph or truce_

_resolves quietly_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And phew, that's the end of beginning/exposition stuff! Like, I'm not even past the first page of my outline, and if I had known it wasn't going to be a one-shot, all of this would probably have been one chapter. Thank you all for the lovely comments, they are so heartening! I've been set back a bit in my timeline because of some cosmic karma. The joke I made about pyramid schemes in the first chap bit me in the butt bc now my little is involved with one, so I gotta step in. I'll try to get these cranked out as fast as I can tho!
> 
> Also, if anybody knows an artist I can commission do railgun fanart, pls lmk! After reading astral buddy, I've been thinking like the "my mom sells me to one direction" but instead its misaka selling kuroko to shokuhou lmaoo ik they both want her but misaka gets fed up sometimes
> 
> Thanks for the read! Have a great week!


	4. a well-intentioned unease

The final stretch of her career at Tokiwadai hit Mikoto like a wet sack of cement.

Once school had restarted that Monday, she hit the ground running with more studying and abilities training. The week passed in a laborious blur, reaching Friday before she was aware of it. They just kept increasing the workload for their third years. Due to the nature of the school, it was expected that all students would get into at least one of the top five high schools in Academy City. For a Level 5, it was even higher. They wanted her to do an extra independent project on her own, and the only other person given this assignment was the fellow Level 5, Shokuhou Misaki. Apparently the blonde knew what her study would be instantly, and Mikoto couldn’t help from feeling defeated at her indecision. It was an open assignment, with the only limitations being that it had to be some project that can be tested and applied to the greater good of the world, not to mention a fifteen page essay on its findings. She had asked her home room teacher for advice on what to do, but she just said that she could only provide materials, not an idea. That was why Mikoto hauled yet another stack of textbooks to her dorm that had given her. They varied widely on subjects, from mechanics to medicine to political science.

When she got to Room 208, Mikoto dumped all the books onto her bed, arms feeling like jelly from having to lug them all the way to the exterior dormitory. She lifted one of them and laid down in it’s spot, hoisting it above her head and letting it open to a random page. 

_“...Indeed, you could argue that the pervasiveness of power contributes to freedom in that each power type can be used for liberation as well as coercion. Force, persuasion, manipulation, and exchange can be used by the strong to overcome the weak, but each one can also be used by the weak to fend off the strong.”_

_Power._ It was just a word, but in the past year she thought that she'd heard enough about that topic to last her through the decade. Mikoto scrunched up her nose and took a look at the cover. _Analyzing Politics_. That made more sense. While she had respect for the social sciences, they seemed to often prattle on in their texts rather than just get to the point. She tossed it aside and flipped open another; an electrical engineering textbook. It was familiar enough that she didn’t need to read it, but still nice to refresh the basics.

The electromaster kept browsing about Lenz’s Law and right-hand rule until her roommate arrived.

“More materials?” Kuroko asked, placing her school bag down at her desk.

“Ugh, yeah,” Mikoto groaned, tossing her head back and shutting her eyes. “I’m glad that she’s so enthusiastic to help, but I don’t think she realizes she’s overdoing it.” She snapped the book shut and got up to arrange the textbooks with the others by her desk before taking a seat on her chair. 

“Perhaps I can be of assistance?” Kuroko offered. “What is the other doing?”

“Oh, Shokuhou? She’s doing the psychological effects of globalization and how it affects trade,” she answered. She pondered about it before scrunching her eyebrows together. “I don’t think that kind of thing is for me.”

The teleporter thought. “Well, it appears that her topic combines her abilities and interests. Maybe you should do something similar?”

“Yeah, that’d be the best thing,” Mikoto agreed with a sigh. “I’m not sure what my interest is though.”

“I’m certain that that won’t be a problem to choose, Onee-sama. You are naturally so driven and passionate, I know you will have a great topic,” Kuroko assured. 

The chestnut-haired girl peeked at the stack of books next to her. She was glad that Kuroko had such a steadfast faith in her, but she didn’t have quite as much for herself. The truth was, though she did possess that urge to overcome any obstacle in her path, it was hard to choose the next step without something to push against. It was completely open terrain, yet she was frozen. In school they taught her to hone her ability, move up the ranks. And that’s exactly what she did, pushing through all the barriers until she made it out. Mikoto had focused so much about what was in front of her that she hadn’t given much thought to what life she would be living once she had grown out of the standard Power Curriculum Program.

Mikoto tried her best to swallow down her uncertainty. “Thanks,” she said.

“Now, not to be too forward, Onee-sama, but would you like to accompany Uiharu, Saten, and I to the pool?” Kuroko asked. “Schedule permitting, of course.” 

“Well, I guess I’m free,” Mikoto admitted. “No use in just waiting for a topic to appear. It might be good to go take a break.”

“Yay!” Kuroko teleported to the side of her, arms wide to embrace her before pulling back. Instead, she placed her hands on her shoulders. “I’ve even got a swimsuit picked out for you already.”

“If you picked it out, I don’t want it,” she grumbled. 

“But Onee-sama, you would look so exquisite,” Kuroko tried.

“That makes it seem even worse.” Mikoto turned in her chair to face her roommate and scowled. “Am I going to get upset the moment I see it?”

With an awkward chuckle, Kuroko held up her hands and took a few steps back. “My mistake, Onee-sama. Here’s your normal swimsuit,” she said, presenting the one-piece.

Sparks danced dangerously across Mikoto’s fringe. “How did you get that?”

_“Tee-hee”_

Before Mikoto could react, she was blinded by her swimsuit being teleported against her face. When she yanked it off to yell at her roommate for going through her locker, she was already gone, footsteps in the hall signalling her retreat. 

Her shoulders tensed in irritation before letting out a sigh. Then a laugh.

“I guess Kuroko was trying to snap me out of my project funk,” Mikoto mumbled to herself, starting to gather her own pool bag. Kuroko was a bit heavy-handed, yes, but for a moment, Mikoto had forgotten her stress. She eyed the textbooks by her desk before letting her lips quirk up into a hint of a smile. “Idiot.”

\---

Mikoto was impressed by the amount of restraint that her friends had. Here she was, putting on her swimsuit in the changing room in mostly peace. 

“Shirai-san, no!” came a hushed cry.

“Misaka-san will look great in her swimsuit, so we can just wait.”

Mikoto frowned, trying to tune out whatever was happening out there.

“Of course she will! But perhaps she can use help-”

There were sounds of a scuffle with hands muffling voices. 

Her friends were being weird, to say the least, but the self-control was nice. At least she could get changed without being harassed. Mikoto gave a quick check of herself in the mirror before meeting her friends out there. The moment she walked out, Kuroko was at her side.

“Would you perhaps need help applying sunscreen, Onee-sama?” Kuroko asked, trying her best to hide that opportunistic glint in her eyes.

“Uh, sure,” Mikoto replied anyways, ignoring the triumphant look her friend sported. “Let’s find a spot to set down our stuff first.”

As they looked around, Mikoto couldn’t help but think about the sheer luck they had for weather. Today was probably one of the most perfect days to go swimming. The sun shone brightly overhead, and while it was warm, the summer blaze had mostly died into the mild heat that signaled the beginnings of the fall semester. Mikoto couldn’t remember the last time she went swimming for fun. Though she often swam for gym class, that was nothing like just hanging out with her friends.

They settled on a spot with a couple of pool lounge chairs and an umbrella. A chill ran through her as the hairs on the back of her neck began to stick up. Kuroko had already gotten out the sunscreen, lurking as Mikoto placed her bag in the shade. _Ugh, I’m already regretting this,_ Mikoto thought as she settled into a pool lounge chair.

Trying her best to relax, Mikoto allowed Kuroko to rub over exposed skin, just waiting for her roommate to take it too far. But Kuroko was uncharacteristically quiet as her hands made long strokes that doubled back on themselves. Fingers ran up and down along her spine, then moving to cup her shoulders, fingers unknowingly putting a welcome pressure on the tense knots that seemed to be more and more common. It wasn’t completely unlike her to want to help Mikoto, and the electromaster tried to push any needless worries out of her mind. Mikoto accepted the temporary peace and eased up to lean forward, resting her elbows on her thighs. Putting on sunscreen was much easier to do with a partner after all. It was comforting to feel the warm hands of someone she trusted rub up and down her back without fear. Once she was covered on her back and arms, red-faced Kuroko thrust the bottle into her hands, avoiding eye contact.

“I need a drink.” Was all she said before scurrying off to the concessions stand. 

Mikoto blinked. What had gotten into her?

“Wait!” Saten called, then jogged over to her. “Shirai-san, hold up, I want a drink too!” 

Pouring more sunscreen into her hands, the electromaster couldn’t help but worry about the weird behavior of her younger roommate. It’s not that she enjoyed the invasion of her privacy, but a part of her missed the casual intimacy that wasn’t perverted. She briefly wondered if Shokuhou was interfering with her life again. But no, none of them had the tell-tale signs that Mikoto had become so familiar with. Besides, their begrudging partnership put that kind of warfare behind them.

“Hey, Uiharu, did something happen with Kuroko?” Mikoto asked.

“Oh, um,” Uiharu faltered, awkwardly putting a finger to the side of her cheek. “Well, you know how Shirai-san has her own type of unique behavior.”

“Now you’re acting weird.” Mikoto frowned. Uiharu’s eyes didn’t have the kind of emptiness from Shokuhou’s control. Instead, they contained a hint of mild anxiety. “Is something happening in Judgement?”

“Um, no, it’s just-”

“UI~HARU!” Saten shouted as she ran up from behind, pushing her to the pool side before shoving her in.

Uiharu sputtered out pool water, arms flailing as she began to tread water. “Saten-san!” she whined.

“It’s a pool, why are you guys still standing here?” Saten laughed, grabbing Mikoto’s forearm. “C’mon! I want to make a massive cannonball to splash Uiharu.”

Surprised at the sudden change of pace, Mikoto stared down at the hand grabbing her. Then she grinned and nodded, going to the edge of the pool before leaping in hand and hand, ignoring the squeak of fear that Uiharu let out. They swam back to the surface, and once breached, Saten busted out laughing at the shell-shocked expression of her mild-mannered friend. They continued swimming and laughing together, enjoying the cool water. 

Eventually Kuroko came back to them, appearing above Uiharu to dunk her before teleporting a couple of feet away to gracefully dive in. Surprising Mikoto once again, Kuroko didn’t even try to touch her. In fact, she gave her a steady breadth of nearly a foot at all times. And it wasn’t just Kuroko, Saten also refrained from any sort of teasing. Something in the back of Mikoto’s mind knew something was wrong, but she wasn’t able to pinpoint it. She soon got a splash in the face, jerking her out of her thoughts to start an all out splash war. The four of them played for nearly an hour together, splashing and laughing before finally noticing how much closer the sun had gotten to the horizon. 

After a bit of discussion, they decided it would be nice to get some shaved ice together before their curfew hit. They gathered up their bags and towels and headed to the locker room to get rinsed off and changed. Though the pool was always enjoyable, getting to rinse off all those chemicals afterwards was a relief. The smell of chlorine made Mikoto’s nose sting, and she hated how it lingered even after she dried off.

“Onee-sama, would you happen to have any more soap?” Kuroko called. “It seems that I’ve run out.” 

“Yeah, I just finished up, you can have mine,” Mikoto answered, turning off the faucet and wrapping her towel around her. 

She walked over to Kuroko’s stall, handing her soap bottle through the curtain. Kuroko gave her thanks, and Mikoto turned on her heel to dry off and get dressed. However, the floor was much too slick to make such a move. Mikoto yelped as she felt herself lose balance and start to tip over. Before she hit, she felt a hand reach out to grab her and tugged her upright. 

“Thanks,” Mikoto sighed, feeling that momentary adrenaline retreat.

“Onee-sama, you need to be more careful,” Kuroko scolded. “You should be more alert in a slippery environment such as this one.”

_Oh boy,_ Mikoto thought, preparing herself for the lecture.

“You could’ve been hurt! I-” Kuroko faltered, shoulders stiffening before she cleared her throat. “I’m glad that you’re alright.” And with that, Kuroko closed the curtain to her stall once again.

Once again, Mikoto was left stunned. Not knowing how to process that interaction, she went on to dry herself off and get back into her Tokiwadai uniform.

Once they were all changed, they left to go to the shaved ice stall. Now that Mikoto had no distractions, she noticed that all of her friends were acting a bit different. They still chatted, talking about how good food would be right now, but they were holding back, more passive, especially towards her. None of them even made a teasing remark as they passed a Gekota poster in a shop window. As they walked, Mikoto couldn’t help but wonder what had gotten into all of them. Even _Kuroko_ hadn’t been as overbearing as usual, something that Mikoto wouldn’t normally admit to missing. Was it really a Judgement thing? That could be possible, since Kuroko did often nag at her for sticking her nose in places she didn’t belong. After all, she was a ‘citizen’. But normally they would still tell her that something was happening, even while telling her to stay out of it. No, this was different.

A worse thought came to Mikoto’s mind. Was she getting pushed out of the group? Maybe all of her side activities were slowly driving them away, and Mikoto hadn’t even been aware of it. Most days involved school or some sort of crisis, with Shokuhou not helping her at all in that aspect. She felt like she wasn’t always the best of friends to them, but maybe it was worse than she thought. Afterall, Kuroko hadn’t even bothered to lecture her. Perhaps they were just starting to think of her as a lost cause, the outsider. A certain feeling of gloom began to settle over her. Maybe it would be best if she headed home now.

She wrung her hands together, not wanting to leave her friends but also hating how she felt. Slowly, she fell back from the pack, eyes glued to the ground. The sun just tipped at the edge of the horizon, and she watched the orange glow that reflected the cement. They’d be heading home soon to be back before curfew, so it wouldn’t be much to leave now anyways. 

“Misaka-san?” Saten asked, noticing her absence and turning around. “Do you still want to have shaved ice?”

Kuroko teleported to her side, looking up at her with concern. “Are you feeling ill? I can take you back to the dorm.”

“Ah, no, I’m alright,” Mikoto assured, putting up her hands, feeling bad for interrupting them. “Though I may head back to the dorm on my own. You guys can go on without me.”

“Are you sure?” Uiharu wondered. “It won’t be quite as fun without you.”

Mikoto stepped back, unsure. “Oh, I…”

“We don’t have to have shaved ice. We can go somewhere else,” Saten offered.

That just made her feel even more guilty. “No, no, shaved ice sounds great,” Mikoto said with as much ease as she could project before taking off in large strides, leading the group to the vendor. She didn’t want to see what their expressions were.

At the stall, they all looked at the different flavor combinations that had been painted on the side of the structure. Saten pulled out a single coin.

“I learned this trick from some of my classmates,” she explained. “They have so many flavors and it’s so hard to choose, so I do a Russian Roulette.” She flicked the coin randomly at the board, watching it until it landed, making a small _tck!_ as it hit the wood. Then Saten went over and returned with the coin, handing it over to Mikoto. “Yeah, I would’ve never chosen something called _Monkey Memory,_ but it actually looks pretty good. Why don’t you try it, Misaka-san?”

“Alright.” Mikoto turned the familiar object in her hand before lobbing it at the wall. _Summer Days_ was the flavor it landed on, with mango, pineapple, and strawberry flavors and a drizzle of condensed milk. She grinned and nodded to herself. “I think I got a good one!”

After Saten gave praise to the small coin, she went up to the stall’s window to put in her order but then looked back. “I can get yours too if you want, Saten.” 

“Really? Thanks!” Saten came over and put in her order as well. The old man at the register thanked them both and said it would only be a few minutes.

“Let’s pick out a spot to sit at while they figure out what they want,” Mikoto suggested. Saten agreed and relayed the message before following Mikoto. After giving the park a brief scan, they found a bench that could fit all four of them. The two made their way over to claim it, setting down their pool bags. 

“How about I go help them carry back our food?” Saten offered. As she got up to go, Mikoto suddenly felt something that made her chest tighten. It was unfamiliar, raw. All she knew that seeing her friend leave was making her heart beat uncomfortably. It was almost overbearing. As Saten took a step, she reached out her hand to grab her friend before changing her mind and pulling back, clenching her fingers around the edge of the seat. Despite this, that anxiety continued to roil and she couldn’t help herself anymore.

“Wait,” she mumbled before clearing her throat to speak louder. “Wait a second, Ruiko.” 

Saten froze. Slowly, she began to sit back down with a puzzled expression. “What is it, Mikoto?” She tried to meet her gaze but Mikoto looked down at the ground, body tensing.

“Is something happening? Like something in Judgement?” Mikoto asked. The coarse wood bit into her skin, but not hard enough to bring blood. She felt a tremor in thighs, feeling exposed. Even though there was no reason for this anxiety, she couldn’t help but feel nervous. Why was she nervous?

“Not that I know of.” Saten frowned. “Why, are they bugging you? I told them not to.”

The sentence processed. Then she blinked. A light bulb went off in Mikoto’s head. 

_Oh._

Mikoto chuckled and mustered up the most genuine smile she could. “No, no, not at all.” She lifted her gaze over to the stand, watching their friends struggle to carry the food, spoons, and napkins. “Can you stay here? I better go over there and help them.”

Saten looked at them blundering and went back to Mikoto. “Are you sure? We can talk a bit longer, just the two of us.” They watched as Uiharu let out a cry as she managed to keep her hand on two containers of shaved ice but dropping all of their spoons.

“They look like they’re having a lot of trouble. Besides, that’s all I wanted to ask,” Mikoto said, standing up. “Thank you.”

“Well, if you sure…” Saten trailed off, looking concerned. Mikoto gave what she hoped was a reassuring nod.

Mikoto went to go help them, listening to Kuroko berate Uiharu for dropping all of the utensils. She swept in, picking up the dirty ones off the ground and offered to get more spoons while they met with Saten. They agreed, having struggled enough on their own.

With a refill of spoons, Mikoto made her way back to her group. She now understood why they seemed so subdued. While she wasn’t sure exactly what had happened, it seemed that they had decided to not make Mikoto upset, apparently in reaction to her episode and subsequent announcement of therapy. It was well-intentioned, but Mikoto couldn’t help but miss the rambunctious attitude that usually accompanied their daily adventures. She passed out the spoons, promising to herself that she would make sure that she isn’t a source of worry for them. All she wants is for her friends to be their normal selves without any restraint. For now, Mikoto would ensure that they could enjoy their weekends together.

  
  


\---

The next day left Mikoto extremely irritated once again. She hated how that damn therapist tries to root through her mind. It reminded her eerily of the Exterior incident. _Nobody_ is allowed to get in her head again. Every time he said something that happened to ring true, she became prickly, shutting down, upset at how he could see something she hadn’t even said. 

“I’ve seen that you have been involved with some criminal cases,” Dr. Uyeno mentioned, eyes scanning his papers.

Mikoto gripped at a textured wooden ball that had laid on the table in front of her, wanting to snap it. “Yes.”

“It seems that you’ve fought an AIM Burst and went on to rescue about a dozen of exploited children. Is that right?”

“Yes.” Mikoto began to scratch at a bump in the ball, wanting to tear it off.

“Does that make you fearful? Like you have an obligation to protect them?” he asked, voice passive as always. That voice that irritated her to no end. If she could crush a voice, she would.

“No,” Mikoto answered, managing not to snap at him. “I’m not afraid. But I do try to make sure they’re adjusting okay. I write them letters from time to time. It’s nice to stay connected.”

“So you feel a responsibility towards them,” the doctor confirmed, glancing at his papers again. 

“I guess you could say that,” Mikoto grumbled, rolling the wooden ball in her hands. “They’re good people though, but sometimes they can be a handful and act like troublemakers.” She gave a huff of dry laughter. “Especially one of the boys.”

He hummed. “Really?”

“Yeah. He’s a nice guy, but he loves to play pranks. Now that they’re in middle school and not elementary school, it’s more frowned upon. I can’t blame him because he never got to experience that whole period of his life, but I can’t support him doing that. Sometimes I feel like the bad guy here,” Mikoto explained, thinking about those serious conversations. The ones that were necessary, but she hated giving.

“It’s a wonderful thing to support them,” Dr. Uyeno commented. “But know that you’re there as a support, not a caretaker. That’s something for the adults to do.”

“Yeah, like I’d trust them to do that,” Mikoto scoffed. The thoughts of _those_ people in her life started rolling through her head. The scientists, the teachers, Anti-Skill. All of them were practically useless in every situation. And the scientists were the one that caused them in the first place.

“What do you mean?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Mikoto bitterly laughed. She began to toss the ball between her hands, those damn people in her head. “The adults are the ones that put them in this situation. They don’t have any family and nobody would’ve cared for them if not for one scientist, and even she got pulled around because she was so young. This city doesn’t care for people. You know, you’ve said you’ve seen it.” Mikoto gritted her teeth, unable to stop. She just kept talking, beginning to slam the ball between her palms. “They’re hurting them, and killing them, and nobody does anything. The people who try to get hurt. And no matter what I do, I can’t keep them safe. I was willing to die for them and even that wouldn’t have affected anything, and even now they’re still being targeted.” She didn’t know why she said it. She didn’t want to tell this stupid guy anything, but the more she thought about, the more the pressure seemed to build up and up in her head. 

Dr. Uyeno nodded, pausing before he spoke. “Are we still talking about the children?” he asked.

A chill went down her spine and her gut churned. Mikoto squeezed that little wooden ball in her hands as hard as she could while trying to look unbothered. “Yes,” she lied.

His eyes burned into her skull as she looked at her hands, both knowing it was a bold-faced lie. But all he said was, “Okay.”

The rest of the session was subdued, Mikoto not willing to talk much after that. Dr. Uyeno decided it would be in their best interest to cut it short, reminding her to schedule an appointment for the next week. And it pissed Mikoto off, but when she went into the lobby, she talked to the receptionist, making yet another appointment.

\---

That week, Mikoto spent most of her free time at her desk. It was a welcome distraction to thinking of her stupid therapy. She didn’t know why she was still doing it; maybe she was trying to prove to her friends that she could handle herself. Whatever the reason, the latest session she had been reminded that it was about time to send her monthly letters to Dr. Kiyama’s students. It was always nice to hear how much they had adjusted to their lives anyways. In between her regular schoolload and her extra research project, she drafted letters to each of them, asking how their schools were doing. 

After being rehabilitated enough to be let back into the school system, they all scattered, going to wherever they could fit in. Some went to Saten and Uiharu’s school, but others were in similarly leveled facilities across the city. They tried to keep them in at least pairs with one other person they knew, but for two of the boys that was the wrong choice, as they turned out to be quite mischievous together. Mikoto kicked herself for not warning Dr. Gekota, the one who set them up with a social worker, that she saw them playing several pranks when she went through Dr. Kiyama’s memories. In her letter, she began writing a warning that they shouldn’t be causing any troubles for their teachers. She scrawled out instructions on behaving better, and if they wouldn’t they’d be hearing from her.

_“But know that you’re there as a support, not a caretaker.”_

Mikoto scowled, trying to shake the voice of Dr. Uyeno out of his head. There was nothing wrong with trying to help people who had been used and forgotten by the city. It should be her duty to assist others, especially with the amount of power she had. It was her responsibility. She looked at her own writing before crumpling it up and tossing it into a wire trash bin. 

She glared at her pen before pushing aside her materials and opening up a physics textbook, skimming over the familiar material. Page after page, trying to get something new out of it that would inspire her with no luck. The Ace tilted back in her chair, rocking on the back two legs as she tried to feel inspired. Just as she was about to give up, she heard her door creak open.

“Hey,” she said, turning her head to see her roommate.

“Hello, Onee-sama!” Kuroko greeted, walking over to Mikoto’s desk. “I’ve brought you a gift!” She presented a small box.

“Oh?” Mikoto asked and pushed herself out of the chair to accept the present. She opened up the lid to reveal four pieces of taiyaki neatly arranged upright. “Dessert before dinner tonight?”

“Well, you’ve been working so hard lately, I felt that you could deserve a treat,” she said. Kuroko smiled, but she rubbed her fingers together absent-mindedly, a soft rogue staining her cheeks. “I got two red bean and two custard, since I know you favor sweeter foods.”

“Thank you, Kuroko.” Mikoto gave a gentle smile that she knew would make her roommate go crazy. “Here, let’s share one of each.” 

As predicted, Kuroko was stunned by the gift, before snapping from her reverie to pull over her chair so they could eat together at Mikoto’s desk. “What shall we start with?” she asked, eyeing the box.

“Hmm, I like I’ll go with red bean first,” Mikoto decided, picking up the little fish pastry with a darkened center. “That way I can end with custard.” Her kouhai followed her lead, grabbing the taiyaki next to it.

“Excellent choice,” the younger girl said before biting into the tail. “Delicious as always.”

“I’m saving the best for last, you know,” Mikoto commented. “I know red bean is your favorite. You didn’t have to do the same as me.”

Kuroko rested her chin against her palm, batting her lashes dreamily. “But this way I can be experiencing this moment exactly like my Onee-sama.”

Mikoto rolled her eyes and lightly flicked her roommate’s forehead. “That’s a ridiculous reason,” she chided. “Do what’s best for you.”

“This is what’s best for me,” Kuroko stated adamantly. “Besides, these are some of the best taiyaki in Academy City, so I would like to eat my favorite one as fresh as possible.”

Though the rationalization was an afterthought, Mikoto still accepted it with only an exasperated sigh. The teleporter had already started eating, so there was no reason to stop. Not that either choice was bad; both were equally delicious. Once Mikoto had mowed through the first one, she eagerly went for the custard. It was easier to get over excited when it was just Kuroko in the room. Mikoto bit straight into the top of the dessert, reveling in the sweet flavor.

“Delicious!” she praised, giving a wide grin. “This was really nice. Thank you, Kuroko.”

The younger girl stopped, before looking away with a bashful smile. “Oh, not at all. This was just a small act. I enjoy seeing you happy, that’s all.”

“Still, you had to go across the city for this. While appreciated, you don’t have to do this for me,” Mikoto reminded. “I’m pretty sure that it’s supposed to be me who takes care of you.”

“Ah, Onee-sama,” Kuroko sighed happily. She looked down at her taiyaki. “You always manage to stun me with your kindness. But I’m not just a simple girl longing for you, I am your partner, the one who supports you.” 

Mikoto nodded. “Yes, you are. So, _partner_ , I need to take care of you. Relax more. You’ve been so uptight lately.” The electromaster reached out and tapped her fingertips on her kouhai’s forehead. “I see some worry lines.”

An expression of sheer horror engulfed Kuroko’s features. _“Worry lines!?”_ she shrieked. “I need to retain my youthful glow to match with my competitors that are after your heart!” 

“...What?” 

“Ah, my skin was supposed to be kept flawless for marriage!” Kuroko mourned, completely passing over the irritated look Mikoto sported. She clawed at her cheek, setting down her taiyaki to lament with even more vigor. “Onee-sama, don’t look at me! It’s shameful!”

“I’m just joking,” Mikoto teased. “Your skin is still clear.”

“Really?” Kuroko whimpered, crocodile tears in the corners of her eyes.

“Yeah,” the electromaster assured with a sigh. “You look just fine Kuroko, I don’t get why you’re getting so worked up.”

Her roommate haughtily stuck up her nose, all signs of her despair gone. “A proper lady must always be vigilant of her looks.”

Mikoto just rolled her eyes at that comment. “Yeah, alright ‘proper lady’. Do you still want to get dinner? Even if we did just have dessert.”

“A proper lady must also have a balanced diet, so yes, I would like dinner.”

“Let’s finish and go eat then, proper lady.”

And when they left the room, all that was left unsaid disappeared as they enjoyed each other’s company.

\---

“Oh, so the others are finishing up their game?” Mikoto asked. 

Once again, it was a visiting day. She sat on the bench of the hospital’s park, sharing a milk tea with Misaka 10039. 

“‘Yes, they are finishing a mighty battle on the live stream,’ reports Misaka.”

“Ah, you guys are really getting into it, aren’t you?” Mikoto commented. She set down the drink carrier that held several more teas onto the ground. “We can save these for when they’re done.”

Expressionless eyes drifted to the beverages. “‘Tea is best enjoyed at serving temperature. It would be best to consume them now,’ says Misaka, hoping to convince Onee-sama to share the remaining tea with her.”

“That’s a bit unfair, don’t you think?” Mikoto scolded, slapping away her sister's wrist that crept over anyways. “Why don’t you tell me about the game that you guys are into now?”

Though her eyes didn’t move at all, somehow an excited gleam appeared. “‘Before I talk about the game, we have to talk about lore,’ says Misaka, ready to launch into the complete and detailed narrative.” 

Mikoto listened as her sister explained all of the parts of the game, from conception and source material to reception by the gaming community. As she prattled on, Mikoto couldn’t help but shift in and out of focus, eyes wandering about the park. Mikoto was happy that her sisters wanted her help. For all she had put them through, she couldn’t help but feel privileged that they wanted to be with her. Though this conversation was a bit dry to her, maybe she could use it as an excuse to get one of them to go to a fall Gekota limited-release pop-up, one that she couldn’t bring her friends to. Mikoto grinned at the thought of it.

Misaka 10039 gave a grand gesture with her arms to show an example of an attack, causing Mikoto to jerk back to attention as she nodded. She gave a smile, but soon found her gaze shifting to the scenery again. Her mind was just a blank hum, listening to her sister speak and soaking in the greenery of the park. It wasn’t until she saw a bit of movement that she noticed there was a man, all the way by the street, staring right at them. He was in an all grey high school uniform with black zip-up hoodie that covered his head. Ice ran down her spine as she stared back. Was she overreacting? No, he had actually been there for quite a long time. When she spent time in public with her sisters it always garnered attention. But he wasn’t just passing, he was looking with intent. With recognition.

Her fingers crushed the flimsy plastic cup with an audible crunch. Her sister stopped her lecture, looking at her with passive inquisitiveness.

“Onee-sama?”

Mikoto blinked, not even releasing how tense her face had become. “O-oh, sorry about that,” she said dismissively.

“‘What’s wrong?’ asks Misaka, unsure of Onee-sama’s outburst.”

“Nothing, sorry, sorry,” Mikoto assures, waving her hand. Looking over her sister’s shoulder, she sees that the man had vanished. She gritted her teeth, feeling unease crawl up her throat. “I need to go check something real fast, make sure everybody else gets a drink.” 

With that, she took off, ignoring her sister’s voice asking for her. 

The chestnut-haired girl rushed to the street, head on a swivel trying to find any sign of that man. Feeling a rush of distress, she picked the direction he was facing and ran. She kept on running and running for four blocks as fast as she could, ignoring the complaints of the people she brushed past. Eyes scanned the streets, the alleys, the stores and buildings, but there was nobody. 

Mikoto caught her breath before returning back to an alley of building by the hospital park, using her magnetism to scale the wall up to a security camera. She plugged in her device into the feed, hacking into it to display the past couple minutes. Quickly she found what she was looking for, viewing the blurry man in the black hoodie and grey uniform staring at her and her sister. It made her want to fry the footage. Mikoto watched as he turned away and headed into a nearby alley. Watching until he was no longer in sight, she headed to the alleyway and found there to only be one camera and scrambled up the wall once again. She pried off the top panel to get a cable to connect to her phone, only to find the box empty. Frowning, she looked at the lens to find it to be just a reflective piece of plastic. It was only a dummy camera. Her lead was gone. Slowly, she lowered herself to the ground before collapsing onto the cement, hands trembling. She slammed her fist against the plaster behind her.

It was clear. Mikoto had seen that look over and over again. 

Somebody was after her sisters again. 

\---

_and yet again_

_left unsure_

_with uncertain gestures_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry! I didn't expect that to take so long. This chapter was a bit of connective tissue so I had a hard time fleshing it out. I didn't realize how far apart I made the timeline til I started writing. It's been almost three weeks since the first chapter, which is lightening fast compared to Railgun's usual narrative. Hopefully the next one won't take so long though school's back in session so who knows lol
> 
> Thank you for all of your kind comments! I appreciate every single one of them!!
> 
> Also the textbook is real! It's by Ellen Grigsby and you can find the passage on page 56


End file.
